The Road We Follow
by A True Radical Dreamer
Summary: Dead.
1. Chapter 1: Code of a Man

!Disclaimer!  
I do not in any way, shape, or form own the rights to "Ranma 1/2" ((trust me, if I did, I'd make sure Shampoo got the lead female role...)) Now that that is out of the way, on with the story!

_Italics_ are thoughts

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**Chapter 1: "Code of a Man" **

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"Shampoo, maybe you should stop hangin' on me...people are gonna start to stare..." The words were uttered by one Ranma Saotome to a very energetic, and happy, purple-haired girl who was currently cutting off circulation to him arm. Looking down at her as she pouted at his suggestion, he finally forced a smile and gave up.

"All right, just ease up a bit, ok?" At this, the Chinese girl just beamed and glomped him tighter. His mind drifted back to the similar dates he went on over the past week. The date with Kodachi had gone a lot worse than this one. She had chosen their date to take place at one of Nerima's finer restaurants and while the food was good, the atmosphere was effectively shattered once Ranma had dropped the purpose of the date on Kodachi. Once that was out of the way, he had actually loosened up. Of course, the only thing that made Ranma truly relax was practicing martial arts. After the news was out, Ranma sure got his practice in! Between dodging razor hoops and ducking under tables to dodge gymnastic ribbons, he'd effectively worked out any guilt he had from the revelation he left Kodachi with.

"I still don't remember how I got to doc Tofu's place to get patched-up. Who'd have thought Kodachi would actually tag me with a fork of all things..." As he muttered this, Ranma rubbed 3 identical puncture wounds on his neck.

"Did Airen say something?" Shampoo pulling at his arm snapped him out of his flashback.

"Errrr...nothing important. So, where do you wanna go Shampoo? It's your date you know." Saying this made him fell even more guilty about what he had asked her out for. Somehow, this date was different from the others he had the past week. Sure, he felt horrible when he had to tell Ukyo, but not to the extent he felt from this. He had saved Shampoo's date for last because of this feeling and the more he thought about it, the more aggravated he got about the fact that he was so guilty. Why was that? He hadn't had near this much trouble telling Ukyo, and she was his oldest friend! He stole another look down on the girl that was walking with him. The way she smiled, her eyes, her lips...these things kept swirling through his mind. Feeling Ranma staring, Shampoo looked up and gave him a smile that almost made him melt.

"What wrong Airen? You acting strange." She put it mildly to say the least. "First you tell Shampoo that you want to go on date, then you let me pick place? Shampoo not even see an angry Akane. Moose also kept his bill out of our business. " It was true, for the fist time she could remember there wasn't an angry fiancée' to be seen nor an angry duck attack to interrupt them.

"Well, I talked to duck boy before I asked you out, as for Akane...that's really the reason I wanted to talk to you." He took on a somber look. He had to tell her, it was only fair. He can't be like his good-for-nothing father, Genma, who ran from all his problems. No, he was Ranma Saotome! Heir to the "Anything Goes School of Martial Arts", the guy who could beat anything or anyone, the guy who... His confidence quickly evaporated as he saw the concerned look on his dates face.

"U...uh...let's talk about Akane later ok?" _Damn you Ranma, grow a backbone! _"Th...this date's about you right? So tell me where you want to go already." _Crap, I am such a coward!_ He did an audible "gulp" as he saw Shampoo's face light up and her eyes sparkle. Holding his arm tighter(if that was possible), she rested her head on his shoulder.

"Aiyya! Shampoo just happy to be with Ranma, don't care where we go." _I wonder what Airen is up to though... I haven't seen Ukyo or that crazy Kuno girl for a week. Even when I ran into Ranma on his way home from school a few days ago with Akane she didn't get mad at seeing me. It was weird, she didn't even hit Airen when I hugged him, she actually smirked at me... _Before she could dwell on this line of thinking much, Ranma cut off her train of thought.

"Well, if you don't mind, we could go to this new cafe' that opened up by my high school. I heard they make a decent Miso Stew and I think we can get some privacy there too, we have a lot to talk about..." He said as he put on his best fake smile but his depression would be evident if one could see into his soul.

"Ok Airen, Shampoo go where you want." _Somewhere private? Is Ranma finally going to confess his love for me! That would explain the other girls being missing, he had to let them down easy. Could that really be it? Could today finally be that day?_

As the two walked into the corner cafe', neither really knew how to start a real conversation. Ranma was to busy trying to fight down a guilty conscience and Shampoo was trying to keep her imagination in check. Finally, latching onto the last bit of decency and nerve he had, Ranma cleared his throat.

"Listen Shampoo, you know about how my mom finally visited me an pops a few weeks ago right?" He asked while fidgeting with a napkin.

"Shampoo know. Mother still not know you have curse? Didn't stupid panda also make agreement with her that you would be 'man among men' when you grow up?" Shampoo visible winced at that thought as she remembered the conditions Genma had made up. _Damn that panda, he could get Airen killed one day with that stupid contract. _

"Yeah, it's about that...things have changed in the last week, that's what I wanted to talk to you about. See, my mom showed up kinda suddenly at the dojo a few weeks after I first met her as Ranko. She kinda saw dad and then...well, the gig was up. She managed to get the info out of that lazy throw-rug. She..." Ranma's voice trailed off as he recounted the events of the last week. Things had changed so suddenly that he hardly could keep up with them. Now, sitting her with Shampoo, it all hit him like a ton of bricks. "She found out I was cursed, Shampoo..."

Silence was the only thing heard at the table for the next few minutes. "Bu...but Airen still alive? What about insane seppuku contract? Mother not care about girl-type Ranma? She think Ranma man among men?"

"That's the thing Shampoo..." His voice almost was a whisper at this point. "Mom doesn't think I've become a true man, and she's holding me to the contract." Shampoo broke out into a cold sweat, her hands trembling. Any chance at Ranma being able to hold his emotions in check were gone with those spoken words, he simply closed his eyes to try to find the rest of words to describe the true reason he asked her out.

Shaken to her core, Shampoo ran through her thoughts. _How can that crazy woman not think he's a man! Would she really kill him...? No! I can't let this happen! I won't let her take him away from me like this! _Without giving a word of warning, Shampoo got up from the table and bolted out the door of the cafe'.

"Shampoo, there is something I have to tell you, it's about what I have to do..." Finally finding the words, Ranma snaps back to reality long enough to open his eyes to at least stare into her eyes one last time as he pulled the proverbial 'trigger'...well, that's what he would have done if he wasn't one Amazon short of a date.

"N...no! Shampoo! Come back!" Leaping over the table at a full sprint, the pig-tailed boy bolted after the purple-haired blur who was just then leaping to a nearby roof, taking out her trademark bonbori as she leaped. _Damn it! I didn't get to warn her about what is going to happen! What is she thinking...no...she can't be heading to...the dojo! I've got to stop her before heads start to roll! _

**FLASHBACK  
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**1 Week Ago...**

A typical day in a not-so-typical town. It's the kind a day that no one could ever predict that anything significant could possibly happen. Well, if you idea of typical is living in a place where martial arts matches are held hourly featuring such styles as "Martial Arts Tea Ceremony" or "Martial Arts Takeout". On one particularly empty street, a woman in a black kamino holding a wrapped katana slowly begins her trek to the front door of a humble Dojo. Not even bothering with knocking, the woman just walks in looking like a woman on a mission.

"Genma! It's been too long since I've seen you." Nodoka Saotome: loved mother, loyal wife, possible angel of death for two certain other Saotome's. She had just shown-up, completely out of the blue and had encountered one of the rare instances when Genma had not been in his furrier form. He was, of course, near drunk and playing Shogi with one Soun Tendo, owner of the Tendo Dojo. "Genma! Why are you here and not my son? I've come to see if he's lived up to our agreement."

"N...N...Nodaka! How in the hel...errrr, I mean, how are you!" Suddenly snapped into soberness, Genma shot up from the shogi board and was slowly backing further into the Tendo house. _Why, of all times, is she here! Oh, I'm sure the boy will be thrilled, but he doesn't know how devoted his mother is to honor...hey, calm down Genma! All she knows is that me and Ranma are here, she doesn't know how long we've been here nor that we've been avoiding her...maybe I can weasel my way out of this yet... _"Nodaka! My darling wife, how I've missed you! I would love to talk and catch up, but me and the boy have a...training trip to go off on!"

"Training trip? Weren't you on one of those during my last visit? That's what that sweet Ranko said last time...speaking of her, where is the little dear? I also noticed that Mr. Panda is missing too...Genma? Why are you on the floor...?" As if on cue, the eldest Tendo, Kasumi, helped a now unconscious Genma to the nearby couch. "Oh dear, it's like his soul has already left his body. I'll go get a cold compress." With that, Kasumi headed off to the kitchen to fetch a rag for Mr. Saotome. She returned shortly with a small basin of water and a piece of cloth.

"Oh, no need for that dear, Genma is a man among men! I'll just douse him with water and get him up." It was at that moment the precarious series of lies all started to unravel. Ranma came home later in the evening after getting out from Furinkan High School along with his fiancée, Akane.

"Hello boy!" Genma-panda managed to get out on of his trusty signs and, with a shaky hand, flash it to Ranma as he walked in the Tendo home. "Your mother's here."

"M...Mom! What are you doing here!" Still in shock over seeing Genma-panda blatantly show a sign in front of his mother, Ranma could do little more than stutter and stare.

"Oh Ranma! You've grown up so much! You're so hansom too! You've done a fine job in raising our son dear." Before running over to give her son a hug, Nodaka patted Genma-panda on the head. "I've been looking forward to this day for years Ranma!" Half-smothering the boy, Nodaka starts to pace around her son. "Well, you certainly look like a real man. I guess your father did that much." Nodaka sat down at the table to drink some tea Kasumi had prepared earlier. Finally able to have coherent thought, Ranma glared at his father who in turn started to play with a tire.

"Don't gimme that 'I'm an innocent panda' routine pops! Did you know that mom was coming! She knows that your cursed too huh?" Going into the kitchen to grab some hot water, Ranma douses his 'darling' father, smirking at his reaction and getting a small measure of payback for the shock.

"Ouch! Hey boy, you do know that luke-warm water will work too don't you!" Yelled Genma as he stowed-away his handy panda play thing. "And yes, your mother knows about my curse. She actually thinks it's kinda cute..." Looking over at his wife, Genma gave a nervous smile as his eyes still watched the family katana resting in Nodaka's lap. "Anyway, what's important is that you get to met your mother...WHOM YOU'VE NEVER SEEN BEFORE IN YOUR LIFE." Genma made sure to stress the last part of this to his son.

"Hey Ranma, I think I'll keep your mother company for awhile, why don't you and Mr. Saotome go wash up while Kasumi starts dinner? We can eat a little early today, right Kasumi?" Akane did her best to not get stressed out in this sort of situation, but that was proving difficult for a girl such as herself. Knowing that Kasumi was in the kitchen instead of her, was a good thing though. At least Mrs. Saotome wouldn't try to force her to learn how to cook again.

"That's a good idea, come on pops, we've got stuff to talk about...and it's good to see you mom..." Dragging a protesting Genma off to the bathroom, Nodoka could only chuckle. "My, they do seem to be attached to each other. I guess my Ranma is too manly to show affection to his dear mother, I'm so proud!" Turning to Akane, she could only smile. "And you must be happy as well. You live with such a manly fiancée' like my son, it must be hard on the other girls."

"Huh? You mean you know about Ranma's other fiancée e's too?" Akane managed to blurt out. Just how much did my dad and Mr. Saotome tell her? Are they trying to get Ranma killed by his mother?

"Uh...Akane, I don't think..." At this interruption, Akane shot her father a glance that made him stay more silent than he had before.

"Other...fiancée's? Akane dear..." With this, the Saotome family katana twitched in her hand. "...tell me more about this..."

"Oh, I'm sure my dad and Mr. Saotome told you all about it, how that pervert Ranma has two other fiancée's he won't let go of. One he leaches food off of and the other he lets glomp onto him all the time. There is even this other girl who is certain that they will 'be together forever'. Really, your son's just a typical perverted guy who MMMMHGH!" Akane had been saying all this matter-of-factly, not noticing the string of face faults her father was doing. Soun finally rushed over to cover his daughters mouth before she dug a grave too deep to get Ranma and Genma out of.

"Ah, Mrs. Saotome, you can't put too much faith in what the girl says. She's insane, gone crazy from the years of stress and testing her own cooking! OUCH!" Soun tried to explain the problem away but was cut short by Akane's teeth.

"WHAT WAS THAT FOR DAD? Really, she asked a honest question about Ranma's other fiancée's. It's not like you and Mr. Saotome didn't tell her about Kodachi, Ukyo, and Shampoo before me and Ranma showed up." In a huff, Akane looked away from her father with her arms crossed.

"Actually dear," Standing up, Nodaka made her way closer to the bathroom. "I was talking about your sisters. I was saying that it must be hard on them to see you with a man like Ranma when they have no one themselves. Oh dear, now me and Ranma must have a talk about this, he can't marry anyone but a Tendo." Nodaka ignored a dancing Soun and a stunned Akane, even ignored Nabiki who was just walking in. Strait to the bathroom she went. It sounded to her like a war was going on in there. Running water could clearly be heard the second she got close to the door. "Genma dear, we need to talk. Something about multiple fiancée's? Really, would you two stop playing a...rou...nd..." What greeted her in the bathroom when she opened the screen, was a sight not even the mountain of will that was Nodaka Saotome could stand.

**Five Minuets Earlier: The Tendo Bathroom**

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"WHAT THE HELL OLD MAN! NOT ONLY DO YOU INVITE MOM OVER WITHOUT EVEN TELLING ME, YOU LET HER KNOW YOU'RE CURSED!" Seething with rage, Ranma now had Genma corned in the bathroom.

"N...now boy...ca...calm down! I had no idea she was going to be here, if I did I would be gone right now. She just barged in without even knocking and saw me. I tried to dance around the issue, but she...caught me off guard..." _No way I'll admit to the boy she scared me unconscious... _"Really Ranma, there was no way to avoid it. You did say you always wanted to meet your mother, what's the problem!" Standing defiantly, Genma mearly looked non-chilantly at his aggravated son and let out a snort. Too bad he didn't notice Ranma go for the wall shower.

In an instant, the once talking Genma was reduced to a rather mute panda. "Because pops...you're a panda! If mom knows about your curse, she'll eventually ask questions on how you got it and where was I at the time! Also, who was it that 'little Ranko' was always playing with? Don't you think anything through!" Getting that off his chest, Ranma then motioned to the tub. "Now run some hot water so we can talk."

Ranma was too busy cursing to himself about a 'worthless panda' to notice that Genma-panda pulled out a quick cold-water balloon. So, the boy thinks he can just shut his old man up long enough to vent and then talk to me like a human when he's ready? Ha, the boy's gone and forgotten who his father is. Good thing the old master taught me how he hides an near-infinite number of Fire Burst Bombs in his gi, with these Genma-Balloons the boy will never have a moment of rest. With a quick change to human form, Genma was again facing his still angry, if not cocky, son. "Well boy, seems you're right on all accounts. Can't argue with someone of your intelligence. After all, I'm just an old man." Putting on his best defeated look, Genma shuffled over to his son and put his hand on Ranma's shoulder. "All I have left to say is...DON'T GET COCKY LITTLE MISS 'RANKO!'"

Due to the close range, there was no chance to dodge the Genma balloon. As it would happen, just at that time the door to the bath was sliding open. Too late for either of the men to notice, the balloon crashed into Ranma who instantly turned into a very soggy Ranma-chan. For what seemed like hours, the three people just stared at one another. It was as if Genma and Ranma-chan could the nerves in Nodoka's brain firing.

"Ranko...and Mr. Panda...Ranma...and Genma-Panda..." Her eye started to twitch in a flash, out came the Saotome family sword. "Genma, darling. I think you and Ranma have a lot of explaining to do. Not the least of which being that you've been lying to me. Also, I hear something about our agreement with the Tendo's being threatened by other fiancée's? I'm afraid, this isn't very manly at all...and you know what that means..." Two loud gulps followed by two screams could then be heard through the better part of Nerima...

**Several Hours Later(and several thousand yen later...)**  
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"Well Nabiki, you can tell a tail, I'll give you that." Nodoka had been listening the past hours about all the trials and tribulations that Ranma and Genma had gone through in China. "It seems that you two have been through a very rough journey." At this, both Ranma's and Genma's faces lit up at the prospect of being forgiven, maybe it had been a good idea to pay Nabiki to tell their tale of woe instead of them trying to stumble through it?

"However, you have been deceiving me for over a month now. Not only that, you seem too comfortable with your curse Ranma. My only son...reduced to this..." Nodoka looked as if she would cry at any moment.

"Don't worry Miss Saotome, I have the perfect idea on how to fix all of this." Everyone at the table turned to look at the speaker. From the top of the wall surrounding the dojo, a man in white robes hops down into the yard. Adjusting his glasses, he smirks at the family. "Really, it's not that difficult to save the Saotome honor."

"Moose...what the hell are you doing here?" Ranma had had enough for one day. Not only is his mother almost in tears over something that was completely out of his control, now duck boy had to stick his bill into it as well? No chance that Ranma Saotome would do that! Going into a loose combat stance, Ranma was ready for whatever Moose could level against him. In response, Moose brought out a hand-full of daggers. It seemed that the two were ready to kick things off when Genma got between them.

"Be quiet boy! If he thinks he can help with this situation then you'd better listen to him. " After silencing Ranma, Genma motioned for Moose to sit down. "Please, make yourself at home my boy! Kasumi, could you get our guest some tea?" Genma seemed pleased enough, although he was avoiding the death glare Ranma had leveled against him. "Now, what's this about a way to please everyone and still keep our heads?"

Taking his seat, Moose sips on the cup of tea Kasumi brought to him. _I never said it'd please everyone... _"Er...well, Miss Saotome, wouldn't you say the real measure of a man is the way he takes care of his family?" Genma went into one of his "sagely stances", contemplating the question.

Genma, however, was not the one Moose had to convince. "Well, I do believe that a strong family is key to being a great man, but I do not think that is the only thing." Nodoka cocked her head to one side, trying to figure out what the Chinese boy was getting at. Off to the side, Ranma still watched Moose closely. _What is that duck up too? Sure I take care of my family, I mean, I only beat up pop when he really runs his mouth and I've loved mom even when I haven't seen her in 10 years...whatever you're up to Moose, I'll be watching you..._

"Well, since Ranma has so many fiancée's, they can be considered his family right? Didn't you also say the number of girls Ranma chases is a problem?" At this, Ranma slammed his foot down on the table in front of Moose. From the shock of it, the Chinese boy fell back on his elbows.

"Now listen here Moose, I ain't chasin' any of those girls! All of them think their my fiancée, I never asked for any of them!" Shouted Ranma, getting more annoyed by the second.

A sparkle shined in the corner of Moose's eye. "Excellent! I knew you knew what I was talking about." Getting back up, Moose put his hand on Ranma's shoulder and turned back to Nodoka and Akane. "See Miss Saotome? Ranma understands what I'm saying completely."

"I...do?" All Ranma could do is give a confused look and blink. "What are you talking about Moose?"

"Don't be so modest Saotome! It's obvious that you know it all. Miss Saotome, allow me to explain: Ranma will prove he's a man by clearing up all these loose engagements and sticking with Akane alone so that they can work on their relationship. Only a real man could tie up all his loose ends and grow closer to his true love in the process. That would show you that Ranma is a man who can take responsibility!" Moose's flow of eloquence ended when Ranma pulled close to his ear, far to close for others to hear what he was saying, especially over the talking of the others in the room.

"No way Moose, I know what you're after. Just because you think you've won here, Shampoo will still never care for you. She can't stand your guts." Moose started to tense up, Ranma could see a small battle aura forming around him and watched him reach into his sleeve. "I wouldn't do that if I were you Moose, if you attack me now, my mom will never buy into your act." All Moose could do is grin and pray, pray that this would work and that he'd free Shampoo from the curse that was Ranma Saotome.

"Well, I've made my decision!" Nodoka Saotome rose from her place at the table and pulled out the family katana. "If Ranma denies all other engagements and instead focuses on a relationship with Akane, then I will overlook his curse and the past cowardliness he has shown relating to it." Genma simply jumped for joy, Soun started weeping into Kasumi's arms, Akane just looked stunned, and Moose simply snickered into Ranma's ear. "See Saotome? Everyone's happy. This is your only chance for a life with your family, I strongly suggest you take it. I'll be sure to tell Shampoo to expect a visit from you in the next few days, don't worry though, when you break off the engagement Shampoo will finally see that I'm the perfect guy for her! I win Saotome." Pulling away from a stunned and bewildered Ranma, Moose took a bow before heading out to the yard. "There you go Miss Saotome, I told you Ranma knew what he has to do, I'll just be going now..." Still with a smile on his face, Moose hopped back over the dojo's wall, heading in the direction of the Cat Cafe'.

_Is this how my whole life is going to be? Always a puppet on someone's strings..._ Ranma didn't have time to contemplate this any further, as he was swept up in a hug by his mother. Finally, he had his mother back, he had some semblance of a family and stability, but...something was missing for him, he couldn't place it right then, but soon he would just see how much pain he caused himself by letting himself choose the easy path that day, one day the dam would finally break...

**Over the Course of the Next Week...**

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So that's how it happened. During that week he had talked to both Ukyo and Kodachi about what his mother had decided. Both objected furiously at the notion but Ranma had held firm. He actually wanted a family, some stability. That's what he told himself when he crushed Kodachi's notion that they ever had a chance together. When he dealt with Ukyo, it was different. By the time he talked to her, it was already around school about what happened with Kodachi. She actually took it rather well, not even a single spatula hit. She was just tired, that was the only way to describe it. It ended civil enough, one last okonomiyaki for the road, a hug between friends before she had set off with her okonomiyaki cart for parts unknown. That was three days before his date with Shampoo. He didn't know why he chose to tell her last, maybe it was because of all the Amazon's did for him over the course of the last year. All the special attacks, all the sound advice, and the free ramin wasn't that bad either. All these things whipped up into his mind as he found himself at the door of the Cat Cafe'. Of course, Moose opened the door and was oh-so-happy to go get Shampoo for her and Ranma's "date", if you could even call it that.

"Ha...the first actual date I take her on and my purpose for doing it is to tell her it's over. What a guy I am..." Ranma muttered under his breath as he stood in the main dinning area of the Cafe'. He found it strange that even in a situation like this, he could still see the irony in life.

"What did you say Saotome?" Moose had just gotten back from getting Shampoo. When she walked out from the back of the restaurant, Ranma was almost floored.

"Uh...I said, Shampoo...looks great..." The words were out before he could slap a hand to his mouth to stop them. It was true though, instead of her usual skin-tight clothes she normally wore, she had on a simple, but cute, purple shirt of Chinese design similar to his own. That, along with baggy pants that were a darker bluish color, made Shampoo an instant knockout, especially with the way she had her hair done, Ranma always did find that to be cute. Shampoo beamed him a smile and turned a little red, Moose nearly caught on fire from his rage, and Cologne could only chuckle, but Ranma was mentally kicking himself. _Why oh why did I say that! Now it's only going to make cutting her off even more difficult...she does look cute though..._

"Shampoo glad you like what I'm wearing. I make it so we match on date!" Doing a quick spin so Ranma could see the whole outfit, she glomped onto his arm. She was surprised when he didn't pull away and only gave a nervous chuckle as he rubbed the back of his head.

"Uh, we should be going Shampoo." Forcing himself to smile, he looked over at Cologne who was only smiling at the two. _Granny's gonna hate me for this, but I have to do it. I only hope she can help Shampoo after all this is over... _Getting more and more depressed as he thought about it, Cologne could tell something was wrong and turned to Shampoo.

"Shampoo, before you go could you bring the box of chopsticks up to the kitchen? They're in the stockroom now." She was going to complain but a look from Cologne abruptly shut her up. Frowning, Shampoo reluctantly let go of Ranma's arm and stomped off to get the utensils. When she was out of ear-shot, Cologne sighed and looked over at Ranma.

"Son-in-law, what's the matter? You're hardly acting like yourself today. You never ask my great-granddaughter out on a date, not that I'm complaining. You also seem to quite upset." Cologne hopped over to where Ranma was and stared into his eyes. "What exactly are you hiding?"

"N...nothing! Why would I be hiding anything?" He gulped, trying to keep a blank look on his face. This spectacle only made her lean in closer to his face in an attempt to read him. "Get away from me you old ghoul! I said nothin' was wrong so don't push it." He turned his back in a vain effort to hide his face from the Amazon.

Moose, who had wisely stayed silent during the exchange between Ranma and Cologne, now sow his plans threatened and decided to step in. "I know what it is Elder!" With an annoyed look in her eyes, Cologne stared a hole through Moose for the interruption. _She's gonna kill me...but if I don't do something that bag of bones is going to ruin everything! Come on Moose, this is for Shampoo! _"R...Ranma's just nervous. After all, it's his first date with Shampoo! That has to be it. He's a shy one you know." The words 'Ranma's date with Shampoo' were spit out of his mouth as if they were poison, but he reminded himself of why Ranma was taking her out in the first place. It was hard for him to suppress his abject glee over the successfulness of his plan. Cologne was just about to comment how well-behaved he was being when Shampoo finally stepped back into view.

"Shampoo finished moving boxes! Now we go on date, lets go Airen." Shampoo jogged over to the flustered Ranma and glomped onto him. Turning back to regard the old woman and young man, she glared at both of them daring them to say otherwise. Inwardly dancing, outwardly furious, Moose showed the pretence of being in a rage and stormed away to the back of the store, confident that he was out of anyone's ability to track him, he silently crept out of the Cafe', heading to off in the opposite direction. Both female Amazons were shocked that Moose didn't do anything to disrupt the date, but neither cared enough to look into it further. Ranma sighed and put on a fake smile, bowed to Cologne, and walked out of the Cat Cafe' with a very happy Shampoo still glomped onto his arm.

From the door of the Cafe', Cologne could only scratch her head. _Something's up, I can tell. I know Ukyo left town a few days ago, and that Kuno girl has laid low for even longer...Ranma, if you hurt Shampoo you'll be facing more than a guilty conscience, I promise you that..._ Having resigned herself to simply let events unfold, she closed that Cat Cafe' early in preparation of the storm she suspected would soon come...

**Back to Present**

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The chase had begun for Ranma. Shampoo was weaving from building to building completely oblivious to anything around her. She was a woman with a purpose, to stop her husband from being killed over something as stupid as family honor. Ranma, you're too nice to your family. Sometimes you have to be firm with people too or they'll simply walk all over you. Thoughts of Akane and the way she treated Ranma only served to make her more upset. It was then she decided, be it hell or high-water she would save her beloved Airen. Her prized bonbori knocking through anything that got in her way. Her destination: The Tendo Dojo.

"Damn it! Where is she?" Ranma, who had left chasing Shampoo only moments after she had left, was now barely able to keep the purple-haired Amazon in his line of sight as he leapt from building to building. _I've never seen Shampoo like this before. I had no idea that she could get this upset! I was at least hoping that she'd take out her anger on me after I told her I had to cancel our 'engagement', how could I know she'd take off as soon I mentioned that_ _mom knew about my curse. Damn it, she cares so much yet I'll just end up hurting her no matter what happens. Why does my life have to be like this! _Getting more annoyed by the minute as he thought to himself, he didn't notice the dagger that caught up to him. In mid-leap, Ranma's shoulder cried out in pain as steel met flesh and bone. Still in control of his movements, Ranma managed to shift his course in midair with his chi so that he'd land squarely facing the direction the knife had come from.

"Show yourself!" Ranma grunted as he pulled the dagger out of his left shoulder. It was bleeding profusely and his vision began to blur as his pulse quickened. "Just...great...some sort of drug..." Ranma barely had time to sift over things in his mind before he fell flat on his face.

"How do you like that? All these fights and the thing that works the best is a simple sleeping toxin." The figure of Moose loomed over Ranma on the roof. He had a slight smirk on his face as he gave the prone Ranma a swift kick to the stomach. "Don't worry, I'll let Shampoo find out the cold truth for herself from your mother. You won't be around to put a nice spin on it, Shampoo will see just how cold you are and then, then we can be happy!" Giving himself a moment to dwell in a fantasy conserved in his mind, he didn't hear Ranma say something from his state of near-coma.

"Sh...Sham...poo...I'm...sorry..." These were the last words he could mutter before his world went blank and the cold embrace of sleep take him...

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Yay! Fist chapter is done! What do you guys think? I have alot of stuff planned for this fiction, so please put your ideas into the review! Chapter 2 should be done by this time next week so keep an eye out for it!


	2. Chapter 2: Strained Relations

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**Chapter 2: "Strained Relations" **

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**Disclaimer! Again, I do not own the anime/manga, Ranma 1/2. Probably never will.**

So! It's already time for Chapter 2 is it? I must say, I wrote this one a lot faster than Chapter 1. This chapter has a lot going on with many different characters, so bear with it as the story skips from plot-line to plot-line. I still have so many ideas for this story so expect updates in quick succession to each other. Also, thanks for the many reviews! I can't tell you how much pride I get out of knowing that other people enjoy reading my work. :)

_Thoughts are in Italics_  
**Chinese is Bolded  
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(also, I have corrected the spelling for Moose's name to the correct form, "Mousse", at the recommendation of others.)

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Shampoo ran as fast as she could towards the Tendo dojo. Her mind was a mesh of emotions and skewed logic. From building to building she leaped, never so much as looking behind her. If she had, she would have seen Ranma trying to keep up with her, only to fall to Moose's blade. Finally coming to the familiar wall of the dojo, Shampoo hoped onto the top of the main gate, silently surveying the scene. From her point of vantage, she could see Genma sitting in the living room, and through the second story window she saw Akane sleeping on her bed.

"Good, violent girl is occupied. I should be able to deal with Ranma's mother without interruption. I don't see mother though, I'll get panda man to tell me." Resigning herself for the battle to come, Shampoo leapt down from the gate and casually strolled up to the door. All hesitation was pushed out of her mind by a single desire: Protecting her Airen. One instant door later, Shampoo found herself in the living room of the Tendo home facing down a very nervous Genma.

"Sha...Shampoo! What are you doing here? I...I thought you had a date with Ranma?" Genma was well-aware that the Amazon was almost as strong as his son was, so he was eager to stay on her good side. _Darn you Ranma! I had hoped you'd deal with her...she has those __bonbori things with her too..._ Genma did an audible gulp as he looked at the double maces that were in Shampoo's hands. He mentally ran up how much more it would hurt getting pounded to death by those things than a swift cut from his wife's katana.

"Shampoo no here to see dumb panda, is here to see mother, where is she?" Shampoo was noticeably ticked-off as she absent-mindedly tapped her bonbori against her him in agitation.

"Your mother? Why would she be...here..." It then donned on Genma that Shampoo thought of herself as Ranma's wife. "YOU WANT TO SEE NODOKA!" Images ran through Genma's mind as various scenarios played themselves out, most of them ending up with his wife lopping off his head. "N...now...Shampoo, dear, why would you want to see Nodoka for? I mean, Ranma must have explained all this too you, so why..." He was cut off mid-sentence.

"Ranma tell Airen that mother find out about curse, come strait here after hearing it. Now, where is she? I know she here, Shampoo see her through window," Shampoo was getting more upset by the minuet. The look in her eye told Genma that if she didn't get her way he would suffer for it. _Why is she so stubborn? Hold on...if she came straight here after Ranma spit out that Nodoka knew about his curse, maybe she doesn't know he's planning on breaking off their engagement...this could get significantly worse if Nodoka is the one to tell her...Ok, calm down Genma! You can deal with this, you spent 10 years in the wilderness with the boy, if you weren't scared of him, why by scared of someone weaker than him? Shampoo doesn't even know Nodoka's here, if I can get her to leave, the boy can set her straight whenever he gets back from whatever he's doing..._ In his mind Genma was already declaring victory and gloating over brilliant plan, too bad he forgot he was a Saotome and that nothing ever worked out for him the way he would like...

"Genma honey, where are the extra blankets?" There was silence in the Tendo home, something that was almost alien. _Maybe Shampoo didn't hear that...please, oh please..._

"GENMA! I asked where the extra blankets are!" Reduced to sobbing now, Genma slowly looked up at a grinning Shampoo. He watched as the Amazon moved past him. It wasn't until he felt the cold mace crash into the back of his head did his sobbing stop.

"Stupid panda." That was the last thing Genma heard Shampoo mutter before he gave way to a bonbori-induced nap. Visions of easy life were shattering all at once and only nightmares of a giant katana greeted him in his slumber.

Several moments passed before a loud crash woke him up. He was about to chalk all of his past encounter with Shampoo up to a horrible, horrible dream when the sound of shattering glass pierced the air and brought him to complete awareness.

"Nodoka!" Genma broke out into a cold sweat at the thought of what the angry Amazon might do to his wife. Running up the stairs to the Satome bedroom he skids past the door but quickly backtracks, the carnage that was his room would be enough to bring a lesser man to his knees...the blood, the unconscious Nodoka, the stunned Akane, the damage to the Tendo home...

"W...what the hell happened here...?" That was the only thing Genma managed to get out before collapsing onto his knees.

**Several Minutes Earlier: Tendo Household **

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"Stupid panda." Shampoo had gotten tired of the idiot that was ignoring her. After a quick dispatching of the meddlesome in-law, Shampoo headed up the stairs towards the Saotome bedroom. Like a panther on the hunt, Shampoo moved through the house quietly and calmly, stalking her pray. She knew where Ranma's bedroom was and was running down the possible escape routs that Nodoka could employ to escape her. All of this grinded to a halt as she stepped in front of Ranma's door. Tightening her grip on her bonbori, she slowly opened it and slid in. She saw an average-looking woman picking up various bits of trash and just straitening up the room in general, apparently not noticing her presence. She noticed that Nodoka was unarmed, but then saw her katana laying on a table closer to the window, she wasn't warrior in the least, so there was no need to worry even if she got to her weapon, but there was still something about Nodoka that put Shampoo off. Maybe it was the fact she wanted to kill her Airen? That thought really set Shampoo off. She quietly closed the door to the bedroom, walked a distance inside the room, and coughed to get Nodoka's attention.

"Oh, there you are Gen...ma?" She turned around expecting to see her loving husband but instead met a fierce-looking purple-haired girl. She didn't seem too happy nor friendly. The way she was clenching her fist around her odd-looking weapons was certainly disconcerting.

"...Hello, who might you be dear? If you're one of Akane's friends, she's up in her room I think." Nodoka watched as the girl winced at the words 'Akane' and 'friend' were used in suck quick procession.

"Shampoo no here to see violent girl, is here to see you." Shampoo said in a forceful, yet calm, manner. "I will not let you hurt my Airen over some old vow. What worth is honor if Ranma dead? If you want to kill him..." Shampoo lifted one of her bonbori and pointed it at Nodoka. "...you have to kill Shampoo first."

"Kill him? I wasn't planning on killing him dear, at least not now. He's proven that he's a man among men by his actions over the last week. It is nice to see that you're still so devoted to him, a good quality in a woman! I'm sure you'll make someone a wonderful wife someday." Nodoka actually thought well of herself for giving the Amazon a compliment like that. _It's the least I can do after what Ranma must have said to her. Oh dear, Ranma must have been rather harsh to her, it must have not fully set-in yet, poor thing._

Shampoo was both confused and relieved at the same time. Confusion reigned as Nodoka mentioned that she was no longer holding Ranma to the deal, and that she considered him a real man, however she was happy that Ranma wasn't directly in danger anymore. _Well that's good. It looks like this will be easier that I thought. What did she mean about 'his actions over the last week'? I know__spatula girl left earlier, could that be it?_

Getting a little nervous at her lack of information, Shampoo cocked an eyebrow at Nodoka. "What you mean by 'He's proven that he's a man among men by his actions over the last week.'? You mean how Ukyo and ribbon girl have stopped chasing Airen?" Shampoo was utterly confused, but part of her screamed out that she should not have asked that question.

Nodoka gave her a questioning glance. "I mean that he's broken off all other engagements other than the one with Akane Tendo. Didn't he tell you today?"

Suddenly it dawned on Shampoo. How nervous he had been, how nice he had been, not complaining about spending time with her, the "important thing" he had to talk to her about. She could only stand there with her mouth slightly hanging open. She let her bonbori fall to the floor, at the moment she didn't care, the only thing on her mind now was denial and pain.

"That...that not true! Ranma would never do that, he doesn't even like Akane!" Shampoo was fighting with the image of the Ranma she knew and the Ranma she saw today. All the things he said, they all came to the surface.

"Why is it that hard to believe Shampoo? I mean, you didn't have a chance to begin with anyway. I mean, Ranma's nice and all, but some things have to be done...with less concern for the consequences to others." Shampoo whipped around to look at the figure standing in the door frame.

"Akane...", Shampoo hissed, "I have no time for you now, go back under rock you crawl out from." Shampoo was livid, not only had Ranma hidden the truth from her, he stringed her along for the day. She tensed up and clenched her fists until her hand was starting to bleed from where her fingernails were digging into her palm.

"I can't believe this! He led me on for the whole week! He could have told me when he told Ukyo, but he didn't. I...actually thought..." She stopped long enough to fight back the tears that were welling up.

"What? You thought he was going to tell you he loved you or that he wanted to be with you? How stupid could you be Shampoo?" Akane was enjoying this, for once she had Shampoo at a disadvantage and she wasn't going to back down. "Really Shampoo, even you should have seen this coming."

"Quite true Akane dear." Nodoka said moving closer to the window. She smiled and looked at the waning sun of afternoon. "Ranma is honor-bound to marry a Tendo and join our two families, there really is nothing that could be done about it. He understands this, that's why he agreed to do it."

"R...Ranma agreed to...end all other engagements?" Shampoo's last shred of faith in Ranma was beginning to snap. _He couldn't have agreed to this...he wouldn't! _

"Of course dear, Ranma already set Ukyo straight and Kodachi hasn't been around for days. You were the last one he was supposed to talk to, that's what your date was about." It was at that moment that Shampoo's world came crashing down.

"No...I...I can't believe it. Ranma wouldn't do this to me. Shampoo won't believe it!" She was beginning to retreat into herself, but still held firm. Shear determination was the only thing keeping her from breaking down and sobbing.

"If it's not true, then where is Ranma?" This question from the youngest Tendo caught Shampoo off-guard. _Where was Ranma? Didn't he care? He knew that I would come here, he KNEW that I would find out...why would he...?_

Shampoo's inner dialog was cut short by a sigh from Nodoka. "A mothers duty is never done it seems. Ranma must have not had the nerve to tell you himself and so left it to me and his fiancée. Really, I thought Ranma had grown up some after this, he's still the little boy that left with Genma. At least now he's finally taking some good advice and bringing honor to his family like I wanted him too, I guess that would make up for this."

Shampoo had taken enough. Something inside of her snapped as her mental picture of her beloved Airen, the man whom she'd devoted over a year of her life to, the man whom she'd defy her very tribe for, the man that she loved more than her own existence, shattered. _First he allowed me to believe I had a chance with him, he took me out on a date, he even let me hold onto him for once...I thought it was all going to change between us. Well, things...are done, Ranma...you...I can't forgive you for this...I WILL NOT forgive you for this!_

As these mental declarations were being made, the worst thing Nodoka could have possibly done happened, she opened her mouth."Now dear, I think it would be best for you to move on and forget Ranma. He will soon forget you once he and Akane are married, so I would not like you to fight that. Now, if you will please leave our home. I have things that need to be done around the house and I don't have time for one of Ranma's old flames." Nodoka casually picked up the bed linens that she had been gathering before Shampoo's interruption. She walked past the motionless Amazon and was almost out the door when a cold, rage-infused voice broke the silence.

"What make you think you just...walk away?" Shampoo turned her glare toward the Saotome matriarch. "You are just as guilty as Ranma! You force him to make decision, you willing to kill him for stupid family honor!" She was now in a feral rage. Her eyes were almost blood-shot and a definite battle aura had built up around her. Sensing that the Amazon might try something, Akane grabbed the Saotome katana. The blade flashed out of it's sheath, shining in the dim light coming through the bedroom window.

"Stay back Shampoo! Just because Ranma chose someone else over you, there is no way you have the right to take it out on Mrs. Saotome. More importantly, I won't let you." To emphasize her point, Akane brought the katana into a standard offensive stance. _Maybe all those duels with Kuno helped me out after all..._

Being reminded of her pain, her suffering over the result of Ranma's decision did not help the purple-haired Amazons state of mind. The pain, the suffering, the rejection... all these things took tangible form as she charged at Nodoka. Akane had little time to act as Shampoo surprised her with a burst of speed that Akane had never seen from the Amazon. Shampoo's fist found it's mark and Nodoka fell in a heap. There was a cost of Shampoo's all-out assault on Nodoka, Akane had a clear shot at a defenseless Shampoo. In a moment, there was a flash of silver followed by red as the katana found it's mark. A deep cut was now adoring the Amazon's face, running from Shampoo's chin all the way up to her hairline on her left side. Akane quickly brought the katana to Shampoo's neck. It was covered with blood, some from the initial cut, most from the blood falling from Shampoo's face.

"Shampoo, leave. If you come back, I'll..." Akane was cut off by Shampoo grabbing her katana. Gripping it tightly, apparently too far gone to care about the additional wounds to her hands, Shampoo pushed the blade away from her throat, bringing her eyes level with Akane's.

"Tell Ranma that if Shampoo meet him again..." Shampoo tensed up with these words, her aura flared to the point where the katana cracked under her grip. "...I WILL kill him." With that last bit, Akane could see the cold conviction in her soul. Only the sound of steel snapping brought Akane out of her daze and she promptly fell to her knees. Shampoo calmly walked to the window of the bedroom and blew out the glass with chi spike and left, leaving behind an unconscious Nodoka, a shocked Akane, and a very confused Genma who had just arrived.

"Wha...what happened here Akane!" Genma rushed over to his wife and looked over her injuries. It wasn't too bad, although Nodoka might not be waking up for awhile. "Akane, when Ranma gets back tell him me and his mother will be at Doctor Tofu's." Picking her up, Genma rushed out to the street, heading for Dr. Tofu's clinic.

Akane, still in shock, held up the broken katana. "I've never seen Shampoo like that. She...could have killed us both..." Looking over to where Nodoka was, Akane remembered that while she was in shock, Genma had taken her to the clinic. She managed to get up with shaky legs to go after Genma.

**20 Minuets Later On a Distant Roof-Top...**

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"Ugh..." Ranma slowly wills his eyes open. "What...the hell happened to me?" He could only prop himself up with his right arm, his left was in too much pain. Night had already fallen in Nerima. He rose slowly to his feet, and stumbled through the dark grasping his left shoulder.

"Damn, I've lost a lot of blood, I'll get you for this Mousse, I...swear it..." Ranma continued to stumble forward, barely aware of his surroundings. "Whatever it was that Mousse got me with, I still haven't recovered yet. I've got to find Shampoo though..." He continued though the dark until he ran out of roof. With a short cry, he plummeted over the side of the one-story building. Still suffering from the effects of the sedative, he is unable to land on his feet and instead smashes into the street below, instantly knocked senseless. The crash catches the attention of several passers-by and they call emergency services. The last thing Ranma hears are the sounds of sirens in the distance and the slowly-fading whispers from the crowd that has gathered.

**Meanwhile on the other side of Nerima... **

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"Not good enough Mousse, you at least need to be able to hit me if you ever want to beat Son-in-Law." Cologne was just finishing a short sparing match with the blind China-boy. She had decided to keep the Cafe' closed today, as she had a strange feeling that something was going to happen with Shampoo. It was getting late, and she was starting to worry about her great-granddaughter's lateness.

"Mousse, that's all for today. Go get a shower then get the kitchen ready for tomorrow." After a quick nod, Mousse walked upstairs to the second floor of the cafe'. Cologne took the opportunity to fix herself a cup of tea and relax a bit in the dinning area, her thoughts were still on her great-granddaughter however. S_hampoo's been gone most of the day and it's way past her curfew, even if she's with son-in-law. _Trying to think of a good explanation as to her great-granddaughters absence, Cologne recounts the sparring session with Mousse. _Then there's that fool. He hasn't even tried once to go after Ranma and Shampoo, he even asked if I would train with him today. Maybe that fool's finally gave up on Shampoo now that Ranma's taken a liking to her? It seems to be too sudden of a change to be legitimate though..._ A loud crash coming from the kitchen brought her out of her thoughts. She hopped off to go and check.

"Put your glasses back on Mousse! How many times do I have to tell you that?" Cologne could only rub her forehead staving off a headache as she watched the male Amazon stutter out an apology to a house plat. She was about to cane the boy over the head when the front door of the cafe' slid open.

"I'm sorry but where...Shampoo!" Cologne hopped over to the bleeding form of Shampoo that had collapsed in the doorway of the Cat Cafe'. There was a large gash on the side of her face and she was pale, clearly a sign of losing too much blood.

"Mousse, get in here now!" Cologne shouts in the general direction of the kitchen, drops her cane, and picks up the now unconscious Shampoo. With her chi-infused strength, Cologne easily caries Shampoo further into the restaurant and uses a table rag to try and stop the bleeding.

"SHAMPOO!" Almost in tears, Mousse rushes over to Shampoo and Cologne. Gazing at the unconscious Amazon.

"Be quiet you fool and get the fist-aid kit! We have to get this wound to stop bleeding." Cologne was uncharacteristically shook-up. Her focus was off as she eyed the gash in her grand-daughters head. Some of the blood had dried, showing that the wound wasn't fresh. The dried blood on her face showed that Shampoo had tried to stop the bleeding with her hand on the way back to the cafe'. Her right hand was also cut deeply as if by a sword. As Cologne was looking her young charge over, Mousse returned with the first aid kit.

"Good, now go get me some cold water. I'll clean off some of this blood." Mousse could only stare at Shampoo as she laid there, barely audible curses of revenge against Ranma. "Don't you even think about it Mousse! If you care about Shampoo as much as you claim, help her now and get your revenge later. We don't even know who did this too her." Mousse glared for one last moment before he ran to get the water. With it, Cologne quickly cleaned the wounds on the young Amazon before binding her hand and putting a large cold compress on the largest wound on the side of Shampoo's face. Gently picking her up, Cologne took her to her room to rest while Mousse cleaned up. Slowly, Shampoo came too and looked at her surroundings.

**"Grandmother? Wh...where am I?"** Shampoo noted the concerned look on her great-grandmothers face and the bandages on her hand and face.

**"Quiet child, you're in your room. Now, lets start at the beginning, what on earth happened to you?"** Cologne kept an eye on Mousse who was waiting just inside the door of Shampoo's room to make sure he didn't bother her great-granddaughter too much.

**"Ranma...he...he..."** Shampoo recounted the events of her date with Ranma though sobs. She explained how she and Ranma went to the cafe' to talk about something important, how he told her his mother new about her curse, and how she had left to try and save his life. The utter pain she felt as she confronted Nodoka and the injuries she sustained at Akane's hand. After the explanations, Cologne sighed and changed Shampoo's bandages.

**"Don't worry dear, no one does this to family. She'll..."** Cologne was cut short by Shampoo shaking her head.

**Grandmother...no. Ranma made his decision, he wasn't even there to tell me himself. I can't do this anymore, we've been here for a whole year chasing him, I want to go home and get on with my life, Ranma...wants to get on with his.** Cologne was about to disagree, when she looked into her great-granddaughters eyes. She could see the utter defeat and underlying rage in her soul. With a sigh, Cologne solemnly nodded.

**"We'll leave once you're healed up. You should know, that cut will leave a scar for the rest of your life. As to us leaving, I'll make the arrangements in the morning. Now get some sleep child."** Cologne hopped back from Shampoo's bed and shooed Mousse out the door. Neither female Amazon noticed the smile he wore as he headed out the door.

**The Next Morning: Nerima Medical Center **

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Doctors and nurses hover around a hospital bed. In the bed, is a familiar pig-tailed martial artist. A tall doctor checks out the boys eyes with a light, occasionally writing something on a clipboard.

"I'm gonna...kill Mousse..." Rubbing his head, Ranma tries to sit up on.

"I wouldn't advise that sir, you had a concussion when our medical team brought you here." The doctor said all the while checking various screens around Ranma's bed.

"And just where is 'here'? How long have I been out?" Still rubbing his eyes, Ranma relaxed and stretched his legs under the linens.

"Oh, all night. We found you in the middle of a street, it seems you fell off the top of a building. You also had a rare sedative in your system and you were suffering from blood loss from a wound on your left shoulder. It's amazing that you're alive. Do you have any family we should call? You didn't have any identification on you."

Thinking of his family and how they'll react to him being gone all night, Ranma sighs. _If my parents or the Tendo's come down here, it'll get ugly. Akane will accuse me of spending the night with Shampoo or something like that, mom and dad will probably blame me too. I'm worried about things back home too, Shampoo ran off to the dojo. I'm sure she went off the deep end..._ "Nah doc, I'll just head home myself." Ranma sat up and pulled the IV's out of his arms and hopped out of the bed. After a few stretches, he walked past a stunned doctor and headed out of the door.

Taking a strait, yet slow, path to the Dojo, Ranma arrived soon at the Tendo Dojo. Walking in, he couldn't find his parents or the Tendo's. _Where the heck is everyone? I would at least think Akane would be pounding me with her hammer..._ As Ranma walked into the kitchen, he was nearly run over by a flustered Kasumi.

"Hey Kasumi, where is everyone?" Ranma said as he helped her back up off the floor.

"Oh Ranma! Mr. Saotome and the rest of the family is at Doctor Tofu's. They asked me home so he could work." Kasumi stood back up and headed up to Ranma's room.

"Hey Kasumi! Wait up! Why is everyone at Doctor Tofu's?" Ranma followed her up to his room. What he saw shocked him. His room was in total disarray. The window was blown out, there was blood everywhere, and the Saotome katana was still laying on the floor in two places.

"Kasumi, what the hell happened here? Where's...mom...?" Thoughts shot through his head as to what happened. "Did Shampoo do this to my mother! Did she...hurt mom? Is all this blood the reason everyone's at the clinic?" He was visibly shaking and his muscles tensed up.

"Oh no. From what I can gather from Akane, most of this blood is Shampoo's. I do hope she's alright..." Ranma winced. _S...Shampoo? How did she..._ He looked down at the broken sword Kasumi was picking up. _No...I don't believe it! There is no way mom could have hurt Shampoo this much!_ Further over by the wall, Ranma spotted Shampoo's trademark bonbori. He walked over to them and picked them up, studying them. They were heavy, but not too heavy to him and they had no defensive marks on them. _She didn't even try to defend herself. Shampoo..._ Staring at them for a few moments, Kasumi walked over and put a hand on his shoulder.

"I'm sure she's fine Ranma, she did leave under her own power." Kasumi could feel his stress, even from where she was.

"Yeah...I'm sure mom's ok..." Ranma sighed as he headed towards the door.

"Ranma...I wasn't talking about your mother. I'm meant that I'm sure Shampoo is fine." Ranma stopped for a moment, but then continued walking out the door. "She better be Kasumi...she better be." The words were barely audible as he headed towards the clinic...and the family that has been controlling his life.

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Yay! I finally got the new chapter up! So, what do you guys think? I hople Shampoo fans don't mind me giving her that scar. It hurt me writing it. I really think I can flush-out her personality in this series, so I hope you guys won't hold it against me. 


	3. Chapter 3: Highwayman

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Chapter 3: "Highwayman"**

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Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma 1/2, not at all...**

**Bolded is Chinese**

_Thoughts are in Italics_

Yo! Chapter 3, this is really the start of the story. Like I've said before, I have over 15 chapters planed for this fiction, all about the same size of the last two(6,000-5,000 words) so don't go slack on the reviews! I need people to tell me if I'm doing well, if I'm doing badly, whatever. Enjoy!

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The sun slowly reached it's zenith in the sky above Nerima. A boy with a short pony-tail walked down the road that would eventually take him to his most difficult battle. There was no impossible opponent waiting on him, no flashy battle. No, something one hundred times worse than anything he had ever faced before: His family. A sudden chill crept up his spine at the thought of facing them. He was trying to find something to occupy his time on the trip to the clinic. He was trying to do a trick with the bonbori he brought with him, he was trying to hide them somewhere on his body with little success. _How the heck does Shampoo do that?_ Looking down at the weapons in his hands, he wondered why he brought them. He hadn't even noticed he had them until he was half way to the clinic, by then he figured it would just be better to keep them and try to learn that trick. Somehow, the boy felt he could stand up to his so-called "fate" if he had them with him.

"Is it really just the weapons themselves that give me the confidence to move forward, or is it the person who they remind me of..." His voice deserted him as he saw his destination: a small clinic on the corner of two sleepy streets. The building itself wasn't too impressive, but the change Ranma wanted could only be obtained there. Shaking out the thoughts of anything, or anyone, else, he steeled himself for what was to come as he went into the clinic.

Tenitively walking into the cramped lobby area, he leaned the bonbori up against the wall. _This is going to be hard enough like it is, I don't want them to be reminded of Shampoo right now, that would only make things worse._ As he walked towards the back room where he was sure his family would be, he looked over his shoulder at the weapons. Sighing, he continued on until he come to the private medical room. He could hear voices coming from inside, so he lightly knocked on the door waiting to be let inside.

"I'll get it." Ranma tensed up as the door swung open. Akane blinked at him as he stood there. She seemed to snap out her shock long enough to throw a punch at his face. Being the martial artist he is, Ranma managed to dodge the fist enough to avoid direct contact, her knuckles still grazed the side of his face though.

"What the hell Akane!" Ranma yelled as he somersaulted back away from the door. Akane was still fuming as she stood in the doorway.

"Ranma you idiot! Where have you been! Your mother has been in here all night and you finally show up now!" Ranma, caught off-guard, could only glare at her. He tensed up his fist, trying to keep his anger in check.

"I don't need this now Akane! I'm here to see my mother, now get out of my way." He tried to keep his cool, but any more verbal/physical attacks from the youngest Tendo would push him over the edge. Genma, who had until now been at Nodoka's bedside, decided to defuse the situation.

"Now Akane, the boy is here now. No need to jump down his throat before you hear his story. Right now though, I'm sure he just wants to see how his mother is doing." Looking back at Genma, Akane finally gives up and moves out of Ranma's way. She retakes her previous seat off to the right of Nodoka's bed.

Still watching Akane, Ranma walks into the small room. He sees his mother asleep in the bed with a large welt on her face. _So, that's why everyone is here. I knew something happened to mom, but I forgot to ask Kasumi what it was..._

"So, Shampoo did this to mom?" Ranma asked his father. Genma looked confused but he still nodded.

"What do you mean? You didn't know Shampoo did this?" Akane hissed out. "She stormed into the house and tore the place up looking for Mrs. Saotome. She knocked her unconscious! You were supposed to keep her in check once you dumped her Ranma!" Akane didn't try to hit him again, but Ranma almost felt his body freeze under her glare.

"Of course I didn't know! Mousse knocked me out with some sort of drug when I went after her. It's not my fault that she did this! What the hell did you all say to get her that mad though? Shampoo wouldn't have done something like this unless you really pushed her." Ranma snapped back at her.

"I don't believe this! You're taking that Chinese whores side in this! She's your mother Ranma! Look at her, look how much she's hurt! I don't believe you!" Akane jumped up from her seat, already gathering a battle aura and clenching her fist.

"Don't call that Akane!" Ranma started drawing power as well. Utterly disgusted at this conversation, he was ready to dodge any attacks Akane might try. "Mom will be fine, but all that blood in the bedroom, that was Shampoo's right? What the hell did you do to her!"

Akane was taken back at the vigorous verbal defense Ranma was putting up. She was about to snap back when a voice to her left cut her off.

"Ranma, don't fight with her." All the people present turned towards the speaker. Nodoka sat up in her bed and drank from a cup of water that on the table next to her bed. Clearing her throat, she looked back at the two. "You two should get along better. What matters now is that Shampoo and the rest of Ranma's fiancé's are taken care of. Once I'm released from the hospital, we can have the wedding! Then the schools will finally be joined." She looked over happily at Genma, but instead of an ecstatic husband, she saw a man deep in thought.

Grumbling to herself, Akane settled down and took her seat with her arms crossed, not looking at Ranma. Sighing, Nodoka motioned at a chair beside Akane to Ranma. Ranma, however, was still shaking in anger.

"I asked you a question Akane!" Ranma said while still staring at her. Akane, shocked as she was, only managed to blink at Ranma. _What the hell? He's never been this angry before..._ She looked over at Nodoka who was as surprised as she was.

"Ranma, what is this? Shampoo attacked me and Akane defended me. It's as simple as that. Out of pity I didn't notify the authorities. If I had, I'm sure that girl would have been sent back to her own backwater village in China. I did her a favor." Nodoka said matter-of-factly.

"That's not true at all. If Shampoo was serious about attacking you, there is no way Akane would have been able to do anything about it! All that blood, you two...almost killed her..." He trailed off. His anger had reached an all-time high as he drew more and more chi into his clenched fist. The aura turned into a visible flame as he clenched his fist, it's intensity fueled by his chi. The flame danced around his hand only millimeters away from the skin on his hand. If he could feel the heat, he didn't show it on his face. The temperature started to rise as the flame grew in intensity and started traveling up the chi in his arm until it was almost at his shoulder. Wide-eyed, Genma, Akane, and Nodoka could only blink blankly at the boy.

_She's really hurt, how could I let this happen to her! What the hell am I good for if I can't even protect the people I really care about! _ At that last thought, his aura instantly decreased in power, his flame-incased arm was still blazing, but it's intensity had died down. _The people I...care about? I...care about Shampoo? _ Ranma's eyes suddenly shot around as if he was in a panic, darting from one person to another staring at their faces. His aura totally gone, he sighed and walked out of the room. Snapping out of his trance, Genma shot up to follow after him while Akane and Nodoka could only wonder at what had just happened. Genma caught up with Ranma as he gathered up what looked like Shampoo's bonbori.

"Boy, wait." Ranma shot a glance at his father, but still waited to hear what he had to say.

"That aura you used back there, have you ever done anything like that before?" Ranma only looked blankly at his father.

"What aura? Bah, I don't have time for this, I'm going to go check on Shampoo." He turned to leave, but Genma caught his shoulder at the door of the clinic.

"Boy, let's head back to the house for a minute." Ranma rolled his eyes. He didn't have time for his father to protest about his going to visit Shampoo.

"Look pops, I'll be back later, right now I have to check on Shampoo. I don't care if you think you'll marry me off to Akane but lemme tell you now that it's never going to happen. I don't want to hear any complaints about this! It's my life, let me live it for once." Genma thought about hitting the boy for that, but instead shook his head.

"I'm not talking about that boy, I have something I want to show you." Looking at the distrust in his son's eyes, Genma gave up.

"Fine, go see Shampoo but then come right back home, I'll have it ready for you by then." Before a confused Ranma could say otherwise, Genma walked off out of the clinic towards the dojo.

"...Whatever, I've got to get to the Cat Cafe'." Ranma, bonbori in hand, leapt off the ground onto a near rooftop. Making sure to watch his back this time, he headed off to the Cat Cafe' at Amaguirken-like speed.

**Several Hours Earlier: Cat Cafe'**

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Sunlight streamed into Shampoo's bedroom as morning broke. She rolls over on her pillow only to be fully woken up by a sharp pain on her cheek. Her hands immediately run over the bandage that covers the left side of her face. Her eyes then caught sight of her bandaged right hand. She sighed and fell back in her bed.

"Ranma..." The memories of past day flooded back into her mind. No matter how she tried to reassure herself, no matter how much she tried to forget, they still came. The first few minutes of her date with Ranma, the anger she felt as she headed to the Tendo dojo, the pain she felt when she was cut. _That pain was nothing compared to what I found out...how could you do this to me Ranma. I...I...loved you..._ Almost in tears, she caught a reprieve in the form of her great-grandmother. The elder hoped into her bedroom and over to her bed.

"Shampoo, I see you're up. That's good because I have to change your bandages." Cologne produced a first aid kit and started to unwrap Shampoo's hand. As the bandages came off Shampoo visibly winced. Her hand had a terrible cut at least half an inch deep. Without the bandages, Shampoo couldn't even try to close her hand.

"Shampoo, stop trying to clench your fist, you'll only aggravate the wound. It should be healed up by the time we get home so don't worry. Of course, it'll leave a scare, though not as bad as the one that will be on your face." Cologne finished unbinding the wound with several curses from her granddaughter as she applied the alcohol to remove infection. Chuckling, she rebound Shampoo's hand.

"Since when did you become so weak Shampoo? You've had worse pain than this before." Cologne was trying to goad the quiet girl into conversation to lighten the mood.

"Shampoo has been lax in her training great-grandmother. Have to remedy that when we get home." Cologne sighed. She had hoped that Shampoo would reconsider going back to Joketsuzoku. _I guess some wounds must be healed in their own way..._

"Well child, I already have our ticket home. You need time to rest as I'm sure you'll have many challenges when we get there, both from rivals who want your place as village champion, and from suitors since Ranma is no longer your Airen." Shampoo winced again as Cologne said that, although the elder didn't notice. "As such, I've gotten us on a boat. The trip will only be a week, but I think that will be enough time for you to recover. Mousse is already moving our personal effects to the docks. Well be leaving in about an hour."

"An hour! How Mousse move things so fast?" Shampoo was shocked, she had thought that she would have to wait at least three days to leave.

"That boy has been going non-stop since I told him our travel plans. When he puts his mind to it, he can actually be useful." Of course Cologne knew his motives were less-than-noble, but she figured she could use the boy as free labor. She then removed the bandage from Shampoo's face. The cut had stopped bleeding, but it was still a horrible sight. It ran 6 inches from the base of her hairline to the left half of her chin. Even an warrior as old as Cologne sighed at the sight of it. She gently cleaned it with a cold rag before she applied the alcohol. Shampoo bit down on her bottom lip to keep from crying out. Once all infection was out, Cologne covered it again with a fresh bandage. She then produced a pill and held it out to the younger Amazon.

"Due to the fact we'll get home fairly quickly, I think you should take this." Shampoo picked the small pill out of Cologne's hand and held it up in the light. It was blue and had a Chinese symbol on it, although it was too small for her to make out what it was. She looked over at her great-grandmother with a confused look.

"That is a 'weave healing' pill. It will help your wounds close much faster, but it won't heal scars. It should have your wounds closed by the time we get home. You'll need it too, on the ship I'm going to start your training in one of the four elemental schools. You'll learn the Water School, I think that will help you the most. It'll be brutal, but you'll make it." Cologne waited for Shampoo to take the pill, then she hoped over to the door where she had left a small bag.

"Well, I'm going to go get the last of my things so we can leave. The restaurant is already cleaned out so there isn't much left we can eat on the ship. Your cloths for the trip are in that travel bag by your bed, the rest are loaded on the ship. We're leaving soon, so meet me at the door in a few minutes." With that, the elderly Amazon hopped off towards the kitchen. Sighing, Shampoo got out of bed and walked over to her window. She looked out over the city where she was prepared to spend the rest of her life with the one she loved. The people walking past on the street below, the skyline in the strange city of Nerima, the place that she was about to leave. Pushing any doubts out of her mind, she moved closer to her window and kissed it, leaving an image of her lips on the window.

"Goodbye...my home..." She picked up her bag and headed out of her room, looking one last time out the window.

"...Goodbye...Airen..." A silent tear dropped as he made her way to the front door of the Cafe' where Cologne was waiting for her. Taking one last look at her old home, Cologne closed the door and pinned a note up on the door.

"Come child, Mousse is at the dock waiting for us." Cologne, Shampoo following, made their way to the harbor where a boat would take them to the one place where nothing could bother them: Joketsuzoku.

Cologne smiled to herself as she hopped along. _Well Ranma, you may have screwed things up, but I know you. Consider that sign my first true test for you. I've left the bread crumbs, let's see if you're smart enough to follow them..._

**Back to Present: Cat Cafe'**

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Finally arriving at the Cat Cafe', a pig-tailed youth hops down from a nearby rooftop. Still with bonbori in hand, he approached the Cafe's door. _What? The Cafe' should be open this time of day, what the heck is going on? I know she was hurt, but still..._ Noticing a note on the door, Ranma chooses to look it over and reads it out loud to himself.

"Attention: The Cat Cafe' has moved. New location: Joketsuzoku, China. Due to the boat trip back, the grand re-opening will be one week from Monday, August 10." Blinking, Ranma cursed and headed off towards Nerima harbor. _Damn it! There is still time to catch her! Why the hell did she leave! Not again...I won't let her go like this! _ Running as fast as he thought possible, Ranma pumped more and more chi into his leg muscles, his aura flaring. He didn't notice, but the aura around his feet started to flame. Every time his feet hit the roofs of the buildings, a singed footprint would be left.

All it took for him to arrive at the harbor was around half an hour. Looking at all the ships, he knew he would never find the correct one in time. Pulling a dock worker aside, he asked for the ticket counter. Making his way over to it, several people got out of the mace-weilding boy's way.

"Hey! I need to know which of these ships is leaving for China!" The frightened ticket counter worker simply blinked at the enraged boy. Thinking it best not to get on his bad side, he complied and started looking through his records.

"Can you be more specific? A lot of ships come and go from here."

"Uh...it would be a ship that would take about a week to get to China. It would also be a passenger liner. There would be a lot of luggage, an old bat hopping around on a stick, a young Chinese guy with thick glasses, and a cute purple haired Chinese girl." _Wait a minute...did I just call Shampoo cute? Arrg! I don't have time for this! I'll find her first, then sort out my feelings. _

"Oh, those three. Yeah, they took the 'Hong Kong Maru' this morning." The ticket worker said matter-of-factly.

"You...you mean they are already gone...?" Ranma stuttered. He cringed at the thought of missing her, she had left without a word. _No...now I can't even sort things out or make them right..._

"However, there is another ship heading off to China leaving tomorrow morning." The ticket worker added. Ranma immediately brightened up.

"How much for a ticket?" He knew he didn't have enough money, but he had to try.

"Well...you seem like a strong guy. The ship is short on crew, if you work for them, they will probably let you go for free. It's a slower ship so it'll take longer to get to China, two weeks longer than your friends ship in fact. You don't have alot of time to think about it, they pull out 5:00am tomorrow. You can talk to the captain then and he'll let you on. Should I tell him he has a new crew member?"

Ranma thought for but a moment before he spit out an answer. "Yeah. I'll be here for sure."

* * *

After getting the particular information, Ranma headed back to the Tendo Dojo. It was getting late in the day as he walked through the gate. _They are going to kill me for this. If I tell them that I'm going all the way to China just to see Shampoo, they'll flip out. I don't want to burn anymore bridges until I get my feelings sorted out...I've gotta find an excuse..._

Making his mind up and hiding Shampoo's bonbori with his semi-perfected hiding technique, he walks into the main house. In the living room eating dinner was his father, mother, Akane, Kasumi, Nabiki, Soun, and Ryoga in pig form. They all looked up at him as he walked into the room. Akane instantly turned away in disgust and P-Chan glared.

_Just great, Ryoga's here... _"Hey guys, sorry I'm late, nice to see you out of the clinic mom." Nodoka put on a slight smile and motioned for him to sit. Genma continued eating and Kasumi went back to her conversation with Nabiki. Ranma coughed to get everyone's attention. All but Akane and P-Chan looked up at him.

"Uh...I've got some news. The reason why I was gone is because I was at the harbor getting a boat ticket." Everyone looked stunned. Akane looked at him with a suspitious look in her eye while P-Chan only smiled at his change of luck.

"Ranma, I know things have been tough, but running away won't solve anything. Especially with your wedding to Akane being planned. I'm sorry, but you can't go." Nodoka said. She was the essence of composed as she sipped on her tea.

_No! It's my life! I'll do what I want, not even you can stop me._ That is what Ranma said mentally, in reality he stuck to his former plan of action.

"I'm not running away, I'm heading to Jusenkyo to get rid of my curse." At this, there was an audible gasp from everyone present, even Akane looked shocked. Because of their shock, no one noticed a certain black pig run out the door in the direction of a nearby bath house.

Genma instanly recovered. Instead of saying anything, he simply walked up to the Saotome bedroom. _Man, pops is acting weird...oh well, no time to deal with his mood swings._

"Why now Ranma?" Everyone turned to Nabiki. "If it was this easy for you to get a ticket to get cured, why are you going now?"

_Darn you Nabiki! _"Well, I need some time away from the family. I really need some time to think some things over, the trip will serve for that." _That wasn't a direct lie_, Ranma thought, _Too bad they don't know I'm going to think about my relationship with Shampoo..._ A small grin showed itself for a moment, but was just as quickly suppressed.

"This is wonderful! Akane, you can go with Ranma to grow closer to your fiancé!" Just as quick as Soun Tendo got the idea, two sets of fists knocked it out of him.

"No way I'm getting stuck on a boat with that pervert!" Akane shouted.

"Same thing here! No way I'm going with her! This is a personal thing, so none of you are going, not even pops. Speaking of that panda, I've got to go see him." Ranma left a questioning family behind as he ascended the stairs to his room.

"Hey pops, you said you wanted to see me?" Ranma headed into the room and found Genma by the window. There were still blood stains on the carpet that made Ranma cringe.

"You're going after Shampoo aren't you?" Genma said calmly. He had something in his hands, but from where Ranma was he couldn't see it.

"H..how the hell do you know that!" Ranma was shocked to be sure.

"I know you boy. I'm your father after all. Also, you've been carrying around her bonbori all day long. You've got them hidden well, but you can't pull one over on me. Well, not yet anyway." Genma supressed a chuckle. "I've dragged you around this world for how long now Ranma? 16 years?" He sighed as he turned to face his son. "As much as I want you to marry a Tendo, I also want you to be happy. The Art may be your life, but there is more to it than that, boy. I won't say anything to your mother, she'd never let you leave, she'd probably disown you." Ranma cringed. If it came to it he might give up the family name to go, but he'd rather not.

"...Thanks dad." Ranma went over to his closet. He pulled out his backpack and began putting clothes and such in it when Genma called him over to him.

"Here." Genma handed Ranma a old scroll. Curious, Ranma opened it. There were examples of chi manipulation, basic and advanced katas, and different attacks. He noticed the header of the scroll.

"The...Fire School? What is this pops?" Ranma asked as he began to look over the scroll.

"You know about the four different chi schools right?" Ranma shook his head. "Well, there are four different schools: Air, Water, Earth, and Fire. That is the basic scroll of the Fire School. Today in the clinic, I saw you use a fire technique when you got mad. "

"Really? I didn't even notice...which one was it?" Ranma rolled the scroll back up and began packing once again.

"The 'Burning Fist'. I was quite suprised. All this time, I thought for sure you'd be like me and take after the Air School. Guess I never saw it huh? Your trip should take awhile, so study that scroll and learn it. It's also easier to use a weapon with that school than with the Air School. Since you're carrying those bonbori around, you might as well use them. I think learning this school will help you in the long run." Genma turned back to the window.

"Yeah, I'm sure it will..." Ranma finished packing and turned to Genma. "Well pops, the ship leaves early...so I'm gonna go on..." Genma didn't turn around, he only said one thing.

"Ranma, whatever you decide in China...you'll always have one parent that will accept your decision." For the fist time that day, Ranma smiled. He simply walked over to his father and did something he hadn't done in years, he hugged his father. Quickly breaking the embrace, he went over and got his backpack.

"Tell anyone I did that and I'll kick your ass, old man." Genma only chuckled.

"Wouldn't dream of it. You should take the window and head out that way, if you go downstairs you'll only cause a disaster with Nodoka and Akane. I'll talk to them after you're gone." Genma walked over to the door, on his way out he heard the window slide open.

"You know pops, sometimes you're not half bad." Before Genma could answer, Ranma was gone.

"Ha, that boy will never change." Genma said as an afterthought. He then went down to the living room to handle damage control.

* * *

Ranma made his way towards the dock in the dark of night. His huge backpack was on his back as he studied his new scroll he had received from Genma using the light of the street lamps. He really didn't need light, the characters seemed to glow red themselves in the darkness. 

"So...this tells me how to do the 'Burning Fist' eh?" He began to read aloud from the scroll. "Fold your chi into itself as close to your body as possible, then use the aura friction to ignite the oxygen in the air around you. At advanced levels you can light your entire aura field on fire, this is called the 'Burning Armor'. Be careful however, as the chi flames eat oxygen to burn. If you light the aura around your face, you will be unable to breath due to lack of oxygen." Ranma shook his head. "That's handy to know."

While he was immersed in his scroll, he didn't see the rock aimed at the back of his head. It hit with enough force to almost knock him over. He caught himself though, and turned to meet his attacker.

"Damn, that's twice I've been hit from behind! I really should train harder to avoid that..." He said sheepishly. "Ok, who did that? Show yourself!" Ready to meet anything, he drew up in a classic Anything Goes defense stance.

"Well Ranma, you are really gonna do it this time, huh?" The figure hopped down from a wall that ran parallel to the street Ranma was walking on. It then stooped down to pick up another rock and was gingerly tossing it up in the air and catching it.

"Ryoga! What's the big idea huh?" Ranma said as the lost boy walked out into the light of a street lamp.

"What do you mean 'what's the big idea'? I heard you're going to Jusenkyo right? Well I'm coming too!" Even in the dark, Ranma could see the ecstatic look on Ryoga's face.

"No way P-Chan. This is personal." Ranma said walking off.

"Don't be so selfish Ranma!" Ryoga gritted his teeth. "I have to go! I don't want to be stuck as a half pig the rest of my life! Besides, it's your fault I'm like this, you need to make amens!"

"Well Ryoga, if I was actually going to Jusenkyo you could come, too bad I'm not." Ranma was still walking towards the harbor and Ryoga was still following him.

"Then why did you tell Akane and the others you were? What are you up too?" Ryoga said as he caught up enough to walk beside Ranma.

"I'm..." Ranma trailed off as he looked down at his feet. _It's not like I'm ashamed to say I'm going to go look for Shampoo, it's just I don't want any of the family to find out until I can come up with a way to tell them myself..._ "It's none of your business where I'm going Ryoga! Besides, you couldn't keep your mouth shut anyway if I told you."

Now Ryoga was really interested. "Come on! I won't say anything, really!" He was like a kidergardener with a pleading look in his eyes. "Tellmetellmetellmetellme..."

"ARG! FINE I'LL TELL YOU, JUST SHUT UP FOR A MINUTE!" This was shouted much louder than Ranma intended. Several lights flickered on in the darkness and multiple curses could be heard from people who were woke up from peaceful sleep.

Almost in a whisper, Ranma continued, "I swear Ryoga, if you tell anyone back home about this, P-Chan will be making a lot more apperances, get the drift?" Ryoga gulped and nodded.

"Fine, well, this is how it is..." The next few minutes were spent bringing Ryoga up to speed on the events that had transpired during his latest absence. At several points the lost boy would point out something obvious then get cursed out by an eye-rate Ranma. Finally getting to the point about the purpose of the trip, Ranma stopped.

"So...I'm going after Shampoo. I really don't know why, but I can't get on with my life until I see her again. I'm hoping once I run into her I can get the answers I need." Ranma felt better talking to someone his own age, even if it was Ryoga.

Ryoga rubbed his chin and sighed. "Well, that's...a big step for you huh? I mean, you never talk about your feelings about any of the other girls." Suddenly a thought came over him and he grinned like an idiot.

"Hey! With you going after Shampoo, Akane is free!" Ryoga felt great, his heart of glass just might have toughened up a bit in light of his new odds of winning the youngest Tendo.

"I guess she is, but why you would want her I don't know..." Ranma said, pushing Ryoga's buttons. He was rewarded with a quick punch to the gut.

"Don't talk about her like that!" Ryoga started grinding his fist in when he pulled it back with a yell. Ranma grinned as the air around his waist burned with a chi fire. Ryoga was waving his hand around in the night air, trying to get it to cool down.

"How's that P-Chan? Like my new technique?" Ranma cound't help but get proud at the effectiveness of his new trick. Although he couldn't control it to the point he wanted, he could still summon a bit of fire to a point in his body for a few moments.

"Damn that hurts! So that's the new style you're learning huh?" Ryoga managed to get out between blowing on his hand. "Hey, I just had a thought. The Amazon villiage is close to Jusenkyo right?" Ranma thought for a moment then nodded. "And the ticket price is waved if you work on the boat?" Ranma nodded again. "Well, why don't I go with you anyway? It's close-by where you're going and you also need a training partner for your new Martial Arts style right?"

Ranma considered this and finally nodded in aproval. "It's a long trip so the company might not be so bad. We might be gone for awhile thought, can you deal with that?"

"Yeah! Once I get my curse removed, I can finally come back and tell Akane how I feel! This is gonna be great!" Ryoga said.

Ranma only started to rub out a forming headache as he and the lost boy continued on the way to the harbor. _This...is gonna be a long trip..._

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Ha! Got this chapter written quickly huh? Well, people might not like the coming chapters because Ranma and Shapoo's relationship will be put on hold for awhile. Also, I did make Genma a better father in this fiction. I think if Ranma really picked one of the other girls, he'd support him, IMO. This story is really a Romance/Humor/Angst/Adventure kinda thing, so if that's not your bag, don't bother reading it. If it is, enjoy my next chapter which I should have ready this weekend! Till next time.

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	4. Ch4: Standing on Your Own Two Sea Legs

**Chapter 4: "Week One: Standing on Your Own Two Sea-Legs"**

**Disclaimer: No, I do not own Ranma 1/2 or any of it's characters. I do, however, own the planet Pluto! Mwhahahaha(no, not really...)**

**Bolded is Chinese**

_Thoughts are in Italics_

Wow! So many good reviews, I'm so happy! Please continue to submit your opinions on how the story should be, I can't promise I can do everything you want me to do, but I can promise I'll give all ideas and suggestions serious thought. Also, I would like to give credit where credit is due. I got the idea for the elemental schools from an excellent Ranma Fan Fiction called "Dream of the Earthbound" by Aondehafka which can be found on this site, it's also much better than mine so give it a read if you like Ranma fan fictions. Now, on with the chapter!

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"This is it? It's a trash heap!" Ryoga said as he gazed at the ship he and Ranma would soon be serving on. 

"Beggars can't be choosers. I don't know about you, but I don't have enough money to just toss away on a pleasure cruse. If I did, don't you think I'd have gone to Jusenkyo by now?" Ranma hissed at him.

They had just arrived at the Nerima docks a few hours before the ships' departure. Fortunately, Ryoga had brought his camping with him so they weren't entirely left to fend for themselves. A few fleeting hours of peaceful rest were a nice contrast to the hectic days Ranma had been leading lately. All too soon though, the ringing of Ryoga's alarm clock broke the calm. It signaled the start of their journey and the end of an era in both of their lives. Quickly packing the camping gear, and making sure Ryoga didn't wander off somewhere, Ranma sighed and moved in the direction of the dock where their ship was waiting. In the morning sun, the ship quickly came under Ryoga's scrutiny, who in turn received Ranma's ire.

Ryoga shrugged. "Well, whatever. As long at this thing can get us to China, I guess it doesn't matter what it looks like, even if it is a piece of sh..."

"Whacha callin' me ship, you welp?" A gruff voice came from behind the two martial artists and cut off Ryoga's statement. They both jumped forward and turned to face the man that surprised them. He was old, most-likely in his late 50's. White hair, what little could be seen, was mostly covered by a small, white captain hat. His bear was un-kept and it circled his mouth, meeting his equally-scruffy mustache. An old, tattered coat covered a bright orange sweater. His pants were a faded blue but there was one thing stood out from his waste, he was also wearing a cutlass. However tattered his appearance was, the sword looked like it was serviced with immaculate care. It had a jewels adorning the large hilt and a dragon design covered the length of the thick, sharp blade. No scabbard, it stayed in place held by a tight red sash.

"Well welp? You gonna finish yer observation about my boat?" The man asked out as he shifted a cigar in his mouth.

Ryoga gulped as his eyes ran over the cutlass. "Errr... I was just telling my friend what a fine piece...of art your ship was!" Ryoga always did have trouble lying, it was written all over his face.

Ranma felt some sympathy for his traveling companion but a part of him still wanted to see Ryoga get decked by the old captain, but his conscience won out and he decided to defuse the situation.

"Hey, you're the captain of this ship?" The man shifted his gaze from the flustered Ryoga over to Ranma. "If you are, we're interested in joining the crew until we get to China."

"Aye, you're the whelps that are supposed to help? You kids aren't even worth the hassle, you'd probably fall over dead the first I put some work on yer shoulders." The captain said as he blew a puff of smoke at an infuriated Ryoga.

"Hey old man, we're martial artists! No amount of work can keep us down!" Ryoga, with wounded pride, stared defiantly at the old seaman.

Laughter erupted from the old man as he listened to the lost boy. He pushed past a still-fuming Ryoga and an cautious Ranma, on his way to the ship. "You two need to go home, this isn't a pleasure cruse you know. I doubt yer cut out for this line o' work." He shouted back at the two young men as he walked up the stairs that lead up to the deck of the ship.

"Come on Ryoga! If we can't convince him to let us sail with him, we're both screwed!" Ranma shouts back at Ryoga before he runs after the captain. Ryoga curses to himself as he chases after the pig-tailed boy.

The ship was bustling with activity as Ranma and Ryoga stepped onto the deck. Large crates were being loaded by the deck crane into the large central hold. The deck looked like it hasn't been scrubbed in ages, as the accumulation of salt was considerable. It was a large ship, probably around 200 feet in length and about 80 feet in width.

_Man, but this thing is old! The paints chipped everywhere and that crane doesn't look like it's been serviced in awhile. _Ranma wandered around the deck, keeping Ryoga on a short leash as they searched for the captain. Eventually they spotted the old man moving smaller boxes from the unlading area of the deck over to a laid out area.

"Hey old man, shouldn't someone other than the captain be doing that?" Ranma asked as he walked over to the old seadog.

"Aye, normally they would, but we be short of hands lately." The man grunted as he lifted a particularly heavy crate. Suddenly the weight strain was totally gone as the box lifted out of his hands. Dumbfounded, the Captain looked under the box where he saw a single hand holding it up. He followed the arm up to a grinning Ranma.

"If that's the case, can you really refuse our help?" He walked over to stack of other boxes and set it down.

The Captain mearly sighed. He scratched the back of his head and looked over at the stack of unloaded crates before turning back to the grinning martial artist. "Fine, but you'll both be on probation for a week, if I see you're not pullin' yer weight, yer off my boat. Understand?"

"All right! Yeah, we can live with that, right Ryoga?" He turned to the lost boy who was in the process of wandering off. Ryoga nodded his head enthusiastically even as Ranma guided him over to the other crates.

"Hey wait. In a week's time the boat will be out at sea. If you don't like our performance, how can we get off the ship?" Ryoga asked as he picked up a large crate.

"Just as I said, you don't pull yer weight yer off my boat, land or no land. Oh, and welcome to the Cerberus." The Captain could only grin at the effect this had on his two new crewmen. He was still chuckling as he told another crewmen to set aside two bunks for them. _Yeah, this is gonna be an interesting voyage. _The Captain smiled as he watched the last of the cargo being loaded and his new charges fumble around on the deck.

* * *

**Start of Week One: "Cerberus"**

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**

"Oh man, I never thought we were gonna get a break." Ranma complained as he fell into his bunk. Their employer, only known to them as "Captain", had worked them to the bone as soon as the ship left port. Years of neglect left the Cerberus a poor sight indeed, the paint was cracked and chipped, the deck was green with agley, the roof in the Captain's cabin leaked, and every lifeboat needed to be re-painted. It was grueling work that didn't even give the two martial artists time to train during the day.

Ranma shifted in his hammock. They had already been at sea for three days, and he hadn't come any farther in the Fire School. He would read the old scroll at night, but he had yet to try out any of the katas described in it. He was brought out of his reading by the loud snores coming from the bunk below him.

"And that's the other thing." Ranma tipped the snoring boy's hammock over with his hanging leg. "This guy won't let me get concentrate at all!"

Despite the sudden jolt, Ryoga only rolled over on the floor and continued his snoring. Sighing, Ranma hoped out of his hammock and headed out to the deck.

"Well, since I won't get sleep tonight, I might as well train some." It was the middle of the night, the only lights came from the ships bridge and some stay light from the inside of the ship. He headed around to the rear deck as it was the only place large enough to have free movement for the Fire Schools katas. The different moves were a bit odd for Ranma to grasp at first. Having studied the Anything Goes School for over 10 years, the lack of aerial attacks made the kata sets seem off. The school seemed to focus more on chi and control than speed and power. Most of the moves seemed extremely simple and lacked accuracy. To the experienced martial artist, Ranma would look like a beginner that had seen one to many Bruce Lee movies. Ranma was worried, but still continued to work through the katas. He adjusted the style to allow more techniques and flashier moves to try and even out the deficiency he thought they lacked while still keeping the original move set. After about an hour of this, he fell over from exhaustion, for some reason the added moves made him lose his stamina at an accelerated rate.

"Yer missin' the point of the drills you know." Ranma turned suddenly at the intrusion. He saw the Captain of the ship step out from the shadow of the main bridge. He was still smoking a cigar and grinning, but other than that he wore a neutral face.

"Tha point of that school isn't to have complicated hand moves, but to make you focus yer chi. The basic stances of the beginning move sets make yer body focus subconsciously. Adding all of those extra moves will tire you out faster, especially if ya don't have the chi reserves to do 'um." He walked over to where Ranma was sitting on the deck and held out his hand.

"What do you know about it, old man? I'm just trying to make the kata's more complete." Ranma muttered as he was helped up by the Captain. He then took out the scroll and began looking it over again.

"I know more about it than you do, you ungrateful welp. The Fire School is about using yer chi to do damage, not yer fists." He took the scroll from the young man and looked it over.

"See? Right here." The Captain held up the scroll and pointed to several odd symbols beside each kata and technique. "Yer supposed to learn these things in order. You were on step eight before you'd even mastered chi control!"

"Well I didn't know it was in order! I can't read those symbols!" Ranma shouted in his defense. The Captain sighed and slapped his forehead. He read the scroll for a second then rolled it up and shoved it into his pocket. Ranma was about to protest when the Captain held up his hand.

"If ya can't read these symbols, then I don't suppose you can read the words? Just studying the pictures in the scroll huh?" Ranma sheepishly looked away before nodding. "Thought as much. It's in Chinese, that's why. I really don't know how you got a hold of this thing, but if yer gonna learn it, you better learn it right. Since I can read it, I'll hold on to it and tell you yer lessons for each day. We'll start at noon tomorrow and practice until dinner each day for as long as yer on me boat. I'll double yer work before noon and you'll also have to get up earlier, don't think I'll let you slack off! Oh, yer friend can sit in on the lessons too if he wants, he could stand to learn some of this stuff." The Captain headed back over to the stairs that led to the bridge.

"Hey old man, how do you know all this stuff?" Ranma said as he watched the old man leave. He could have sworn he saw a sad look on the older man's face, but just as quick as he thought he saw it, it was gone.

"Once you've been around as long as I have, you pick up some things. Get to sleep though, cuz I'm gonna work you till yer beggin' me to kill you." The loud chuckle erupting from the man was cut short by Ranma.

"Hey, one more thing, old man." The Captain raised an eyebrow at the pig-tailed young man standing before him. "Since you seem to know Chinese...could you teach me how to speak it? I have a feeling I'm gonna have to do a lot of talking when I get to China..." To the old man, it seemed the martial artist was a bit flustered, then something clicked in the old man's mind. He gave Ranma a sly, yet understanding, grin.

"Oh, got yerself a cute little Chinese girl, eh? Want to be able to have some pillow talk in her own language?" The Captain got just the reaction he was pushing for. The red-faced youth stammering and cursing was reward enough for getting the Captains help. As his laugher erupted, he reached into his coat and pulled out an old book. Flipping through it, he pulled out some stray pieces of paper and quickly placed them into his coat. He grinned and tossed the book to the still red young man.

"There, that's an old Japanese-Chinese dictionary. I've added a few notes in the back to make learning it easier. It's not like them ridiculous school books that you buy at a souvenir shop in Hong Kong, it's conversational Chinese. You should be able to carry on a decent conversation by the time you get off the boat in three weeks if you study some each day." He took a minute to look at his watch, it was a little past midnight.

"You, get to sleep. I'll be waking you and yer friend up extra early to work since we'll be training. Don't use too much of yer strength working though, yer gonna need the bulk of it fer your training." The Captain shuffled up the rest of the stairs and disappeared into the door that lead to the helm.

"Pushy old man..." Ranma marched back to his room and slips into his hammock, still flustered by the conversation he had with the old Captain. _Pillow talk with Shampoo, what the hell does he know? I just want to learn Chinese for my own benefit. Maybe so I could talk to her easier, but nothing like what Captain was talking about. Just to talk with her there is nothing that could be interpreted as wrong or perverted about that, not at all. _Still muttering, he drifted off to sleep, visions of a certain person dancing through his dreams...

* * *

**Several Hours Later...**

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* * *

**

"RANMA! PREPARE TO DIE!" The battle cry of a certain lost boy broke the serene peace of the open ocean.

"You whelp! Calm down, this is just a simple sparring match." The obviously annoyed Captain along with half the crew sat around the deck at midday.

"Oh, right. Guess I just got used to it." Ryoga sheepishly said.

"Eh, it's fine. Gets me in the mood to fight." Ranma said as he dropped into an Anything Goes defense stance.

"Alright you two, here's the rules." The Captain walked out in between the two fighters and looked each of them over, his eyes lingering on Ranma's stance.

"What's that?" The Captain looked confused, but still puffed away on his ever-present cigar.

"What's what?" Ranma asked, blinking at the man.

"That stance yer using, that's not a Fire School stance. Use that move set you were using last night. That's tha rules of my this trainin' session. You can only use combat moves that are in that scroll or any Fire School techniques."

"WHAT! There is no way I can beat Ryoga using just those beginners moves!" Ranma gulped audibly as Ryoga stifled a laugh. The Captain massaged his temple trying to stop an on-coming migraine.

"The purpose of the training ain't about beating Ryoga, it's about gettin' some combat experience usin' those techniques. I fully expect you to get yer arse kicked." At that, stifled laughs drew Ranma's attention away from Ryoga for a moment.

"Annnnnnnnnnnddddd...BEGIN!" Before Ranma could turn back to face the Captain, he was already several feet over his head retreating back to the sidelines in a graceful leap. Stunned by the old man's sudden dexterity, he didn't notice an oncoming Ryoga.

"PAY ATTENTION!" Ranma's head snapped back to face Ryoga just as the latter's fist connected to Ranma's chest. Like a shot, Ranma flew back into a large metal crate, leaving an indention in it's surface before collapsing on his knees.

"Ugggg...lucky shot Ryoga..." Ranma managed to get back up and drop into a Fire School offensive stance. Ryoga, still grinning, shifted to a defensive stance of his own. _Ha, like you can deal with me that easily Ryoga. Good thing he doesn't know any of the kata's for the Fire School, he won't know what hit him._ He rushed the lost boy and struck out for a hard hit with his right palm. Ryoga took the hit with crossed arms, but failed to black a sharp kick that swept into his side. Grunting, Ryoga dropped one of his arms and grabbed Ranma's leg intending to toss him. In response, Ranma used the 'Burning Armor' technique and wrapped the heated chi around his leg. Flames erupted from Ranma's leg and engulfed Ryoga's hand.

"ACK!" Ryoga released Ranma's leg and leapt back a few feet to give him and his opponent a wide breath. The confident smirk on Ranma's face only added to Ryoga's anger. Mutterings from the crowd and a surprised look from the Captain drew both fighters attention.

"Well, you two whelps aren't too bad. That was some hit Ryoga, I thought for sure that brat would be ko'd." He then turned his gaze towards Ranma. "And you, I didn't think you would know the Burning Armor this soon, what other Fire skills do you know?"

"Ha, you'll see in a minute old man, you ready Ryoga?" Ranma dropped into a different stance and smirked at the lost boy.

"Yeah, yeah. Don't get cocky Ranma! Now that I know you can do that fire trick, I won't fall for it again." Deciding to take the initiative, Ryoga dashes towards Ranma. Jabs were sent flying in quick succession at Ranma who managed to block them. Leaping back and away from his physically stronger opponent, Ranma headed towards the top of a large crate sitting on the deck.

"All right Ryoga, time to end this! I'm gonna show you my last trick, so make sure you get a good look." Ranma's confident look shifted to one of utter concentration. His fists tensed as he held them out from his sides. His battle aura, a usual blue, wavered in it's color to a light red. The chi around his fists flared and started to burn, they were literally on fire.

"BURNING FIST!" Ranma shouted as he rushed a bewildered Ryoga. Ryoga was now facing several fast, flaming punches flying towards his face. While they were not scolding hot, it was enough to make Ryoga cringe as he blocked them. Each time one would slip through is guard a singe would me made in the lost boys cloths. _Damn it! I can't keep blocking these punches, they are really starting to hurt!_ Parrying one last punch, Ryoga again leapt back from the flaming Ranma. Expecting a confident smirk from his opponent, Ryoga was surprised when the same expression of concentration showed itself on Ranma's face. Suddenly, an idea hit him.

"Hey Ranma!" The same concentration was on Ranma's face, but he did look up at his opponent. Ryoga noticed that as Ranma lost some of his concentration, the flames on his hands died down in intensity.

_Ha, that's it. I've got you now Ranma. _"Ranma, I don't see how you can be so focused today after last night." A confused Ranma blinked at him. "I mean, all night you were calling out Shampoo's name in your sleep. I figured she would be the only thing on your mind, especially after all the things I heard you talking about. Really, you could write a hentai manga from some of that stuff." Totally red, Ranma started to shout out curses at Ryoga and the crew that had just erupted in laughter mixed with whistles and lewd cheers. With all his concentration gone, the 'Burning Fist' completely faded.

"I've got you now Ranma!" Ryoga shouted as he leapt at Ranma. Caught by surprise, Ranma tried a futile attempt at a dodge as Ryoga's knees impacted with his face. Wincing in pain, Ranma staggered and promptly fell over on his back, slipping in and out of consciousness. The last thing he remembered was a ecstatic Ryoga and a snickering crew.

* * *

**A Few Hours Later...**

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**

"Ryoga..." Slowly opening his eyes, Ranma finds himself back in his shared room with Ryoga. Still groggy from being unconscious, he rubs his face, most of it still red from Ryoga's assault.

"I would have had him if only he hadn't distracted me...what the hell?" Something laying on his chest caught his attention. It was a nice drawing of Shampoo and Ranma. She had on her trademark Chinese dress, he was in somewhat nicer clothes. She's glomped onto him, but he's wearing a content grin. Studying the picture, he almost doesn't notice a note taped to the back of it. Still somewhat interested in the picture, he looks the letter over.

"Hey Ranma, hope you like the gift. I had Barry, he's the helmsman, draw it from a picture of all of us back in Nerima. I know you don't have one with just you and Shampoo in it. Call it a peace offering for beating you like that today. If you want dinner, come to the galley cuz we eat at 6:00pm, if you're up before then come help me with the work! From, Ryoga" Ranma blinked, but looked back at the picture of him and Shampoo.

"Who said I wanted anything like that..." He tried to get angry at the lost boy, but only smiled and got out of the hammock, he folded the picture and put it in a hidden pocket on the inside of his shirt so he could keep it close. _Not like I want a picture of her near or anything, just hiding it so no one else sees it..._ He was walking out the door when something else on the letter caught his attention.

"PS, I can't believe you fell for that trick in the middle of a fight! Ha, you really suck when can't use all your cheap tricks, huh?" Crumpling up the letter and cursing to himself, he rushes out to give Ryoga a piece of his mind and help with the work.

The days went on as Ranma and Ryoga worked on the cargo ship, Cerberus. The Captain made sure to work them hard and even harder during the afternoon training sessions. Having gotten better with his concentration, Ranma could hold a 'Burning Fist' for almost an hour before his chi was used up. Even Ryoga managed to get better with his chi control. Having learned of the boys affinity to the earth, the Captain gave him the same scroll Ranma had gotten from Genma, only it was the beginners scroll for the Earth School. Getting the dirt up from the ocean floor using a sifter that was dragged from behind the ship, the rear deck was transformed into a sprawling training area, complete with rocks and obstacles. Ryoga grew just as much as Ranma had, mastering several Earth School katas and skills, however a match hasn't happened since the first day of training.

"Ok whelps, today yer gonna have another practice match. Any skills, just use yer own schools move sets." The Captain made sure to keep his crew entertained, so he had decided to hold weekly matches for his two young charges. They faced each other: Ryoga in an defensive stance and Ranma in a offensive stance.

"Now, lets kick this fight off!" At the drop of the Captain's cutlass, Ranma raced at his opponent fists flaming. Changing direction at the last moment, Ranma hits Ryoga from an angle he wasn't expecting, causing the lost boy to have a weaker defense than normal. From the added training, Ranma could now use his 'Burning Fist' skill just as the skill was intended it to be used: Subconsciously. As soon as his battle aura flared, his hands would blaze. The quick attacks were quickly getting the better of Ryoga who's arms were now smoking from all the blocks.

"Enough of this! Sand Shield!" Stretching his chi into the transplanted ground, Ryoga raises a wall of earth that traps Ranma's fist. Ryoga took advantage of his opponents lack of mobility, and launched a knee into Ranma's gut. Flying upwards, Ranma is snapped back down by his own arm which is still trapped in the ground.

"Well Ranma, looks like you're stuck. Care to submit?" Ryoga asks in a content tone.

Picking himself up, Ranma starts to pull at his hand's earthy prison. "Not on your life Ryoga!"

"Heh, whatever you say. Don't tell me later that I didn't try to keep you conscious this time though." Ryoga pumps more of his chi into the ground. The result is that the sand wall slowly starts to engulf Ranma's arm. Keeping himself from panic, Ranma focuses his own chi into his arm, un-noticed by Ryoga as he bows to the crews applause.

"I'll just smother you with this sand. Don't worry though, I'll let you out before you suffocate." Ryoga chuckled to himself. For him, it had been a very good trip so far. Already beat Ranma once, met a lot of new people, even picked up a new fighting style. Suddenly a bright glow broke him out of his self musing. Ranma flared his battle aura, focusing everything he had into the parts of his body covered in sand. The resulting pressure caused the wall to shatter and pieces of it flew into the crowd. Now standing in front of Ryoga was a very annoyed, and confident, Ranma.

"Nice try Ryoga, too bad I can use chi to build up pressure in the air around me. Now, lets try out a new technique I made up, huh?" Ryoga took a step back, he was strained from putting so much chi into his Sand Shield, but he still dropped into a defensive stance, weary of Ranma's boasting.

"Flaming Tenshin Amaguirken!" Ryoga cringed. He had been on the receiving end of many a Tenshin Amaguirken before, so he knew what to expect. Even worse what that Ranma could apparently use it with the 'Burning Fist', effectively doubling it's damage potential.

Before Ranma could begin his assault, the ship lurched beneath the fighters. The crew, how had until now been watching the fight, immediately knew something was very wrong. They all ran to their various stations as the Captain called the match.

"No time fer fighting! Get to the forward deck and see what the hell we hit!" He shouted to the two confused martial artists as he headed up to the forward deck, not waiting for the two of them.

"Come on Ryoga!" Ranma shouted as he ran to follow the Captain. Grumbling, Ryoga ran after him. The sight that awaited them left both of their mouths gaping open.

"CAPTAIN!" Both of them shouted in unison. The Captain, cutlass drawn, was facing down what looked like a giant blue dragon. It was easily the length of the ship, the main of silver hair that ran down half it's back seemed to bristle at the sight of the old captain. It's fangs hanging over it's closed mouth. It surprised them further when it began to speak to the Captain.

"Brushhhhhhhh. We meet again. I've told you time and time again to not sail through my part of the ocean, now leave." The creature hissed. It was obviously agitated.

"Ha, since when have I ever listened to an overgrown earthworm? I have a bit of advice for ya Faustosen, let me ship go and you get to live for a bit longer." The Captain yelled back. He spit his cigar out and raised his sword, pushing his aura out in a threatening manor. If the dragon was scared, it didn't' show on his reptilian face, it actually seemed to be smiling.

"Today Brush, I think I have the advantage." Faustosen said as it shifted in the water. Slowly it's tail edged up the side of the ship, just below the guardrail out of the combatants view. It hissed loudly and opened it's mouth, catching the attention of all those present. Suddenly, it's tail swung in behind the Captain and knocked him with force into its waiting mouth. Gulping, the creature licked it's lips with it's forked tongue.

"That'ssssss one lesssss distraction, now for two more appetizers..." It's gaze shifted to a shocked Ranma and Ryoga. Letting out a low chuckle, it lunged at the two young martial artists.

"What...the...HELL?" Was all that could be heard over the crash of the waves as Faustosen shifted it's body for the lunge...

* * *

**Meanwhile, on the "Hong Kong Maru"**

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* * *

**

"Well child, this is it." The door to a cabin swung open and a short old woman on a cane hopped inside followed by a young purple-haired girl. The young girl was carrying several travel bags and was looking quite exasperated.

"**You could at least help me carry your bags!" **Shampoo whined. The boat Cologne and Shampoo had taken was one of the more luxurious passenger liners available. The room had a spacious lounge with three doors leading off of it. One would lead to the small kitchen area, the other two were the double bedrooms. Shampoo dragged the bulk of the luggage to Cologne's room before dropping the bag with a loud crash.

"Be careful with those bags child! They have your training equipment in them." Cologne hissed. She then hopped into the bedroom and began to take out certain things from the bags. Some of the things caught Shampoo's interest, a large pot in particular was very interesting. Before she could reach out and take it, Cologne lightly swatted her hand with her cane.

"Don't touch. You'll get to mess around with these things when we start your training later today." Cologne turned away from Shampoo as a grin crept over her face. _It's good that Shampoo is so interested in training again. She's gotten complacent ever since her only rivals have been Okonomiyaki chefs and part-time martial artists. _

"**Great-grandmother, why aren't you speaking in Mandarin?"** Shampoo noticed that ever since they'd left, the Elder Amazon had spoken entirely in Japanese.

"Because child, you've gotten somewhat proficient in using Japanese and I don't want you to forget it. Just because you've had a bad experience with one person doesn't mean that you should shut out his entire country." Cologne felt bad at bringing up the incident with Ranma, but she also knew that Shampoo had to get over it eventually. _I also want her to keep up with the language in case that boy comes to his senses..._

Shampoo visibly winced when Cologne mentioned Ranma. She had almost forgotten her sadness for a moment on the ship. It still hurt, but she managed to shake off her depression long enough to turn away from the Elder. She absentmindedly ran her hand over the scar on her face, recalling several bad memories. Finally, she chocked out an response.

"Shampoo...sorry great-grandmother. I try to get better with my Japanese." Still turned away from Cologne, Shampoo started to walk out of the door. "I go look around ship, start training later."

Cologne frowned as she watched the younger Amazon walk out the door. _Foolish child. She can't forget him no matter how long she runs from the problem. I only hope I'm right about this, if I'm not I'll only drag up horrible memories. _Cologne sighed and continued un-packing. _The boy has a lot of maturing to do before I can expect anything of him though, I figure I'll have at least a year before he comes after her. I know she hates him now, so I won't mention him again for a few months, give her a nice cool down period..._ Laying out plans in her mind, Cologne smirks again and pulls out several training devices she planed on using to train Shampoo in the Water School.

* * *

Mousse was pacing the deck of the ship, with a huge grin on his face. His plan had gone off without a hitch and anyone that could implicate him was still in Japan. He did feel some guilt at seeing Shampoo with her scar, but he mearly calked it up as collateral damage, a thing that was necessary to rid her of that vile Satome. He walked over to the window in his cabin and looked out at the ocean. Soon he'd be back in Joketsuzoku where he could finally officially challenge Shampoo now that Ranma was out of the picture. 

_All I have to do is beat her! Just once, that's it. I don't want to hurt her, but she still can't see that I'm the one for her! One time, then no more pain for us ever. _As he slipped into his own personal fantasy he suddenly sobered up to one fact: He couldn't beat Shampoo in a fight. He had tried before she even went to Japan, but he couldn't do it. He scrunched up his face at this thought. If he couldn't beat her, then she'd never marry him.

"I wonder what that new training is that Cologne's giving her? The gap can only get wider now..." Mousse mused before heading off to the ships dojo. Mousse had to hand it to the elder Amazon, she really could pick a decent boat. It had a full gym with spa. The dojo area was large as well, at least five times the size of the Tendo's dojo. He dropped into a combat stance and ran though some basic katas, steeling himself so he could go all-out against Shampoo when he finally faced her again...

* * *

Wandering around the ship, Shampoo finds herself on the lavish deck of the ship. She was getting stares from some of the other male passengers on the ship. Some typical lust, others shock. The one's who thought she was cute had a rude awakening when they saw the other side of her face. _Ha, who would want me with this scar? I probably couldn't even get Mousse to look at me now. _She imagined the rest of her life: Sure, she would probably take over for Cologne in seventy or so years, but what of the life she had wanted? She had never thought about a life after Ranma before, her previous 'can't-stop-me' attitude hadn't allowed for it before she lost him. She arched her back and leaned down on the railing of the ship, her head resting on her folded arms. 

_How did things get so screwed up? It's all your fault Ranma! If only you would have made a decision before I completely fell in love with you..._ Her inner monolog was cut short by a low rumbling in her stomach. She half-smiled and decided to head to the ship's galley. Even though it was Chinese passenger liner, it served food from all over the world. Shampoo looked over the selection she had. All of the foods seemed to be meticulously prepared but nothing struck the purple-haired girls fancy. Suddenly, a certain food item struck her.

"Shampoo hasn't had one of those since I was in Nerima. Maybe for old-times sake." She looked around for the server. They weren't at their station, and such lax service was not to the Amazon's taste. Seeing a 'ring for service' bell, Shampoo gave it a few aggravated taps.

"All right! Hold your horses, I'm comin'." A woman shouted from somewhere in the back of the kitchen. Shampoo could have sworn she had heard the voice before, but before she was able to place a face with it, the woman came from the kitchen. For a moment they could only stare and blink at each other. Shampoo finally recovered enough to say something, although it had taken a full minute for her brain to register.

"Y...you!" was all the stunned Amazon managed to stutter out.

"What the hell! Why are you here Shampoo!" People started to turn in their seats to watch the two loud women. Ignoring or not noticing them, Shampoo did an audible gulp.

"Uh...nice to see you...Ukyo..."

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Hurray for cliff-hangers! Yes, the chapter could have ended better, but the next three are really just one big one. I hope you guys liked it! Don't forget to review and tell me what kinda job I'm doing. Thanks for reading too! 


	5. Chapter 5: Revelations and Rivalries

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Chapter 5: "Revelations and Rivalries"**

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**Disclaimer: Guess what, I don't own Ranma 1/2. **

**Wow, chapter 5 already! This fiction has already exceeded my own expectations. I really thought I would only get to chapter 4 before it was over, but the more I write, the more I think up. I really think this fiction will go past 100,000 words in the end, it would definitely be the best thing I've done in awhile if it did. Also, thanks for all the reviews from the people that have bothered reviewing! The story has had over 4,000 hits and 45 reviews! Please keep telling me how I'm doing, it really helps me come up with more stuff. Again, thanks for all the support! Now, on with the chapter!**

**Another Disclaimer: This chapter does have underage drinking. I don't condone it, but it is in this fiction. Don't like it, don't read it.**

_Italics are thoughts_

**Bolded is Chinese**

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"What...the...HELL!" The voice of the flustered Saotome was cut short as the head of the massive serpent crashed into the ships' deck. Barley dodging, Ranma hops behind a lone crate on the deck hoping to buy enough time to formulate a plan. He had just finished a strenuous duel with Ryoga when the ship was attacked by Faustosen , the massive sea dragon, and he had also witnessed the Captain eaten before his eyes. Shaking all other thoughts out of his mind for the time being, he focused entirely on defeating his serpentine opponent. Hearing another loud crash, he pokes his head from behind his hiding place in time to see Ryoga fly into the steel crane, bending it over.

"That was close, think Ranma, think..." Cringing, he decides to use his only trump card, a special attack he developed secretly away from the Captain's criticism. He had planed on using it against Mousse, as he was the only person Ranma felt deserved the extreme punishment.

"Oh well, guess now is as good a time as any to practice it." He hoped onto the top of the crate only to see the massive dragon moving towards a winded Ryoga. To Ryoga's credit, the dragon did look like it had taken a few hits, but the lost boy seemed to be in dire straights.

"Hey fish-face! How about fighting me?" Faustosen snapped his head away from his downed pray to look at the confident Saotome. Narrowing his eyes, it snorted and turned back to the lost boy, it's mouth drooling.

"Damn it! Hang on Ryoga!" Ranma launched himself into the air, using his chi to enhance his altitude. Going horizontal over twenty feet in the air, he whipped his body causing it to spin. Like a top, he reached the zenith of his leap. Quickly producing his adopted bonbori, which he had kept hidden, he focused all of his available chi into them. Erupting in flames, he held them out from his body using his revolution to put power into them.

"FLAMING PINWHEEL COMBO!" Ranma's battle cry made the dragon look upwards at the tornado of flames that was Ranma. All too late did Faustosen realize what was happening. Ranma released one of the bonbori at the creatures head. It looked like a wheel of flames burning across the air towards the dragon's head. At the same time, Ranma shifted the other bonbori downward and rocketed towards the deck of the ship. Using Amaguirken speed as soon as his feet hit a solid surface, he dashed beneath the dragons head. Faustosen, distracted with the incoming bonbori, failed to notice the pig-tailed youth get inside his guard. Shooting upward, the flame-engulfed bonbori connected with the creatures jaw, snapping it's head upward at the same time the other bonbori impacted with the top of it's head. A sickening crack followed the assault as the dragon's skull cracked under the pressure of the two strikes. As Ranma sidestepped from under the creatures falling head, he picked up his other bonbori as it had bounced off from Faustosen's skull.

"Wow...it worked?" Ranma seemed to be quite surprised as he walked over to Ryoga who had collapsed on the deck. Poking the fallen serpent, Ranma put his bonbori away before leaning down to the lost boy.

"Hey Ryoga, how you doin'?" He looked him over, and noticed a large welt forming on his side. "Looks like you broke a rib or two there."

"Ha, it's not...that bad." Ryoga was in pain, but he wouldn't lose face in front of his rival, he refused! Well, that was his idea until Ranma poked his side. Letting out a yelp of pain, he threw a half-hearted punch at the pig-tailed boy from his prone position.

"Thought it didn't hurt?" Ranma chuckled as dodged the hit.

"It doesn't as long as you don't bother it!" Ryoga winced.

"I'll go get someone to check that out. Just don't try to move while I'm gone." Ranma said as he stood back up.

"Hey Ranma...the Captains...?" Ryoga's voice faded off as Ranma walked away. The young martial artist stopped and looked over at the dead sea dragon. He was about to say something when a glint of polished steel caught his eye. He turned towards it, looking at the body of the fallen dragon.

"What...about...tha...Captain?" A muffled voice answered Ryoga's question. Shocked, Ryoga looked around him looking for the source of the voice. Wide-eyed, Ranma watched the body of the beat start to move as it something inside of it was moving. Suddenly, a large blade thrust through the underbelly of the dragon, slicing upward. Contents and fluids spilled out onto the deck, along with a very irate old man.

"Damned overgrown earthworm!" Giving the lifeless body a kick, he spit on the creature. "Thought I'd never get out of there. Good job to whoever killed tha beast."

Blinking several times, Ranma and Ryoga could only stare in disbelief at the cursing captain. Looking at each other, they both sighed.

"Oh well, we wouldn't be that lucky." Ryoga laughed as he massaged his side.

"I'll ignore that comment fer now you whelp. Don't wantcha dying on me deck." Turning towards the bridge, he motioned for some of the crew to get down to the deck. Arriving, they all nervously eyed the dead dragon before being directed by the Captain to take Ryoga to the infirmary.

"Well, you get yerself patched up and then we'll have a nice feast to celebrate." The Captain started to walk off when Ranma coughed to get his attention. He stopped, but didn't turn around.

"Aye...yeah, you've got yerself a few questions. I'll tell ya what I know at dinner." He grumbled before heading off to his room, cursing about vile earthworms all the way. Ranma accepted this, and helped the crew get Ryoga to the infirmary.

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**Back on the "Hong Kong Maru"**

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"Uh...nice to see you...Ukyo..." Shampoo wasn't sure how her old rival would react, but prepared herself for anything. She didn't see the chef's trademark spatula, but was weary none the less.

"You didn't answer my question Shampoo! What are ya doing here?" Ukyo, tensed up. Of all the people she thought she would run into, the purple-haired Amazon was dead last on her list. _And what the hell is wrong with her? She actually called me Ukyo, she's never done that. At least she's not getting antsy, still have to watch her though. _

"Look Ukyo, Shampoo not here to fight. Shampoo not even know you on boat." Shampoo certainly didn't want to pick a fight, and Ukyo didn't exactly look like she wanted one either. _Ha, she must be doing what I'm doing, running from our problems..._ Even indirectly thinking about Ranma made Shampoo cringe. Ukyo picked up something on the Amazon's face, it seemed all to familiar to her. Although, that horrible scar was new to her.

"Oh...you and Ranma had...the talk, huh?" Watching Shampoo look away, Ukyo new she hit a sore spot.

"Well, you came to get something to eat right? I can take my break now so we can...catch up." Shampoo considered it for a moment, before nodding slightly. _Well, never thought I'd have lunch with Shampoo. Wonders never cease it seems..._ Letting Shampoo pick out a table, Ukyo hurriedly prepared two okonomiyaki and informed her boss she was taking her lunch break. She was surprised at the Amazon's current state of mind. All the memories Ukyo had of her were either of her happy or angry, never like this. _I know that look...it's the look of defeat..._ Ukyo managed to put on a smile as she sat down at Shampoo's table.

"So...how did Ranma tell you?" Ukyo asked.

"Ranma...took me out and I didn't listen to the whole point." Shampoo re-counted the short conversation she had with him and her subsequent flight to confront Nodoka.

"Wow, good for you!" Shampoo blinked at the sudden happy chef.

"I mean, you went to go and tell off that bitch right!" Shampoo was shocked at the strong language Ukyo had chosen, but finally broke a smile.

"Shampoo did." She paused and her smile got a bit larger. "And Shampoo punch her lights out too." This was met with a cheer from the exuberant chef. She pumped her fists and a fire burned in her eyes that Shampoo hadn't seen since Nerima.

"You go girl!" Shampoo laughed at the happiness of her lunch companion. She couldn't help but giggle a bit herself.

"It all didn't go well though. Shampoo pay for it in spades." Ukyo calmed down and sat back down. Her eyes involuntarily shifted to the scar on Shampoo's face. Shampoo noticed it and brushed her hair out of her face so Ukyo could get a better look.

"Shampoo got careless, Akane got lucky. At least Nodoka's sword can't hurt anyone else." Shampoo said in a half-chuckle as she ran her fingers over the large scar.

"Akane did that? She always was a little..." She resigned the last of that sentence to low mumbles. Shampoo couldn't help but smile.

"Ranma is only one at fault. He let family run his life, should have just told us both at once." Shampoo had been thinking of that, it would have been much easier and would have eliminated misunderstandings. Of course, he would have been beat to a pulp, but it would have been the more honorable thing.

"I think...he told us individually because he really didn't want to go through with it..." Ukyo shuddered. "I'm not trying to say what he did was right, but I mean, he was without a family for so long. He had to take this chance or he would have had to toss his family aside."

"That no excuse! That make him less of a man if he can not stand up for what he want!" All the pent-up frustration she had to endure, leaving a city she had grown to love, the fact she would never marry, all of it focused on one target to hate: Ranma Saotome.

"I'm not saying forgive him or anything, I'm just saying put yourself in his shoes. All his life was spent with that idiot of a father, always bowing to his will as a kid, you can't really blame him for wanting a stable family." Ukyo still felt the need to defend him, even though Ranma had rejected her.

"Whatever, Ranma not worth our time. Shampoo better off without him, many better men back in Joketsuzoku." Suddenly, Shampoo got an idea, she didn't know if Ukyo would go along with it, but it was worth a try.

"Ukyo, what you're plans now that we no longer fight over Ranma?" Shampoo asked.

"Uhhhh...well, I was planning on hitchhiking on this ship until it gets to Singapore in a few months. Why?" Ukyo was comfortable with the Amazon, but was still weary.

"Why not come with Shampoo to Amazon Village? You good fighter and village need more businesses. Great-grandmother always lecture Shampoo about economy of village and importance of growth." _It would also be better to have a friend around in a village full of enemies..._

Ukyo blinked. Of all the things she expected Shampoo to do, offering her a place in the Joketsuzoku never occurred to her. "Well...I don't know..." The idea of a warrior society where women ruled was a nice little dream. A monopoly on the fast food industry was also a big plus.

"Come on! Shampoo not have many friends in village, most warriors resent Shampoo for being the best fighter. You good fighter, almost as good as Shampoo, would help village to have new blood." She felt a bit of pride that she remembered one of Cologne's lectures about village politics. Ukyo would make a good addition to the village, even if she would half to fight most of the other warriors to be accepted, that was something she would have to mention...once Ukyo accepted that is.

"Well...I guess I could...Yeah, it might be fun." She flashed Shampoo a genuine smile before finishing off her lunch. Shampoo smiled and clapped her hands.

"Good! We go talk to great-grandmother now!" Not waiting for acknowledgement, Shampoo jumps up and grabs Ukyo's hand, dragging her towards the Amazon Elder's cabin before she could change her mind.

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A flurry of kicks, chains, and daggers; long hair flowing while fists blur in a graceful dance of death. Mousse flew around the ship's dojo practicing an advanced kata. Finally coming to the last of the moves, he stops to catch his breath. Without the evil Saotome looming over his Shampoo, he found he can completely focus on his art. In just a few hours, he had improved more than he had in the last week. Smiling to himself, he dropped into another stance and began once again.

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Back in her room, Cologne had set up several odd devices. The most prominent was a large pot containing water. On both sides there were large handles with hand grips. The thought of how much her great-granddaughter could improve had her rubbing her hands together in glee. _Ranma may be more powerful than Shampoo now, but that is going to change drastically. My great-granddaughter has more talent that even myself, maybe even more than him._ She could only imagine how the younger Amazon would rule the village, the Amazon's haven't had a unifying leader in generations. At that moment though, Cologne was slightly annoyed that Shampoo was taking so long to get back. She was eager to start the young girls training as soon as possible. She then heard the door open and shut, so she headed out to the living area to scold her charge for her lateness. 

"Great-grandmother! Shampoo have surprise for you!" Shampoo had dragged Ukyo all the way to the cabin, despite the chef's protests that she still had work to do. Once inside, Ukyo could only gasp at the cabin. _Darn it, they get this while I sleep in a crummy hammock with fifty sweaty guys sharing the same room!_

"Shampoo, quiet down. I'm quite capable of hearing you." Cologne hopped into the living room but was caught off-guard by the presence of Ukyo.

"Ah, Miss Kuonji, to what do I owe the pleasure?" She glanced over at Shampoo with a concerned face, but quickly smiled when she saw how happy her great-granddaughter was.

"Uh, Shampoo offered to let me go to Joketsuzoku with you two. She made it sound so good, that I couldn't refuse. I really don't have anything better to do since Ranma..." Her voice trailed off and storm clouds were already forming abound Shampoo's face. Deciding it was best to defuse the situation, Cologne spoke up.

"Well Miss Kuonji, I don't have any objections to you becoming a member of our village. We do need more outside blood, but I want you to realize that many of the others might look down on you because you're a foreigner. It's really a steep mountain to climb. You would also have to live by our laws, of course." Cologne was happy to see that Shampoo became cheerful again and let another slight smile appear on her face. _Well, a good friend is just what Shampoo needs right now. Maybe this will help her get over her hatred of Ranma faster. Ukyo is also a competent fighter, maybe she would make a good training partner for Shampoo?_

"I expected I'd have to learn some laws. I really don't know if I want to go along with the whole 'Kiss of Death' or 'Kiss of Marriage' thing though..." She really didn't want to have to kill anyone on a whim or marry someone for that matter. She glanced up long enough to see the confused looks on the Amazon's faces and shrugged.

"Child, I don't think you quite understand our customs...The 'Kiss of Death' and 'Kiss of Marriage' are completely optional. It's just a matter of personal preference. Some families care to enforce them, but no one is forced too." Now it was Ukyo's turn to be confused. She glanced over at Shampoo looking for a more thorough explanation.

"Then why did Shampoo try to kill Ranma for all those months? Why did she keep calling him her 'Airen' and try to get him to marry her if she didn't have too?" Shampoo turned away but not before giving her great-grandmother a pleading look. Cologne mearly shook her head.

"Shampoo decided to avenge her honor herself by killing Ranma-Chan. When she was defeated by Ranma, she decided to marry him, it was all her own personal choice. At any time she could have decided to give him up, just as she did when we left." As Cologne explained, Shampoo just kept an indifferent look, inwardly annoyed at being reminded of Ranma. _Oh well, some things may require more time..._

"Wow...I never knew any of that. I don't think Ranma did either. We all thought it was because Shampoo had some sort obligation to marry him. I had no idea that..." Ukyo was cut short by Cologne, she had taken pity on Shampoo by cutting the conversation short.

"In any event, that is the explanation of those two particular laws. I have some books on our customs I'll have you read. Now, there is a custom you have to go through to get into the village..." Shampoo cringed, she was gland that she had shifted the job of informing Ukyo to the Elder Amazon.

"You have to beat a warrior in the village. We should get to China by the end of the week, Joketsuzoku a few days after that. You have until then to at least get to Shampoo's current fighting level." Ukyo was about to protest until she was cut off again, this time by Shampoo.

"Ukyo no need to worry, Shampoo will help with training." She glared at her great-grandmother daring her to object. She was a bit un-nerved when the old woman smiled at her.

"Excellent idea Shampoo. Miss Kuonji can be your training partner and you can help her improve." Turning back to Ukyo, Cologne continued. "Now, in order to get the true training you need, I would like you move up to our cabin and quit your current job on the ship. After all, you won't be needing it after another week. I will take care of your expenses since you will soon be a member of our village."

"Aiya! Great-grandmother always have best ideas. Ukyo, we go get your things to move here!" Ukyo barely had time to bow to Cologne before she was pulled out the door by the purple-haired Amazon. Chuckling to herself, Cologne hopped over to her bags and dug out a translated version of the "Amazon's Code of Laws". She left it on the couch before getting out additional training equipment to get Ukyo up to Shampoo's level. _Well, this is the best thing that could have happened to Shampoo. Not only has the village gained a talented fighter, Shampoo has gained the one thing she never had growing up. She may grow more on this trip than I first thought. Now, if only a certain dense boy could come to terms with things, then I could retire in peace..._

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_**Back to the Cerberus: Dinner**

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The large galley was bustling with activity. Seated at the head of the table was the scruffy captain smoking his trademark cigar, bragging about his latest 'victory' over the sea demon. Ranma had to jump in to correct several things about the captains story from time to time. Ryoga pointed out that the only thing the Captian had gotten right so far was that the dragon had eaten him, after that it was a fight between Ranma, himself, and the unfortunate reptile. The crew joined in the story telling, adding things and glorifying their actions, Ranma and Ryoga were beginning to get embarrassed by all the attention, when one of them asked Ranma how he had beaten the beast.

"Ah, it was easy. Ryoga distracted it for me so I could use my new finishing technique." He rubbed his nose, slightly turning it upwards as his chest puffed with pride. "Yeah, that thing had no chance against my 'Flaming Pinwheel Combo'."

"I was meaning to ask you about that." Ryoga spoke up over the chattering of the crew. "When did you get so good with those bonbori? You never used them during our fight." Ranma thought he saw the Captain pale when he heard that he had used bonbori, but quickly chalked it up to the lighting in the galley.

"It was my trump card! I didn't want to show it to the whole world, but that thing forced my hand. I'm glad I held onto them, they really are a good weapon to use."

"Yeah, and they remind you of Shampoo!" Ryoga snickered. The blush on Ranma's face followed by curses only encouraged the crew to join Ryoga in his laughter, but the Captain only sat pensively, as if he was too shocked to move. Ranma noticed this and was about to say something until one of the crewman interrupted him.

"Here you go kid!" He produced a bottle of wine and set it down in front of Ranma. "After that fight today, you deserve this!" The crew started to cheer and pound the table urging him to drink some. Ranma looked over at Ryoga who only shrugged. Fighting down his common sense, he took a small sip...things quickly got more interesting after that...

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**Later That Night: Ranma's and Ryoga's Cabin...**

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"I don't believe you Ranma..." Ryoga muttered to himself as he helped his inebriated friend into his hammock. To say that it was an interesting evening would be an understatement. After drinking half of the wine, which was later proved to be home-brewed moonshine, Ranma had insisted on singing several 'songs of the sea', as the Captain called them, with the crew. After the impromptu karaoke session, Ranma preceded to extol how good of a friend Ryoga was. Once Ranma had said he admired him, Ryoga knew his friend was clearly too much out of his mind to be of sound thought, and had insisted he turn in for the night. He had been calm and non-combative as Ryoga helped him to his room, seemed Ranma was a happy drunk.

"Ha, you're gonna feel this in the morning Ranma, that'll teach you to drink so much." Ryoga turned in as well, keeping an eye out to make sure Ranma didn't fall out of his hammock by accident.

"Heh, Shampoo..." Ranma muttered from above Ryoga. He tried to listen to his conscience, but in the end Ryoga decided to get some info out of Ranma that he could use later.

"Hey Ranma, how do you feel about Akane?" Ryoga asked.

"Uggg...violent tomboy. Always hitting me with that damned mallet." Was the reply.

"So you don't like her?" Pushing his luck, Ryoga continued.

"Huh? Like her? Uh...sure. Just...hic...don't wanna marry her." Ranma shifted around, but settled back under the blanket that was draped over him.

_Ha! Thank the heavens for that! _ Wondering how much info Ranma would give out, Ryoga again continued. "What about Ukyo? You must like her as a fiancée', right?"

"Ucchan? Yeah...I...hic...guess I sorta like her. She's cuter than that tomboy...hic... My best friend in the...hic...world." Ranma was half asleep at this point, the toll of the day taking out it's vengeance on his ability to stay awake.

_Huh, so Ukyo is just a friend to him, eh? Poor girl._ "Hey Ranma, how about Shampoo?" There was a long silence. At first Ryoga thought he had went to sleep, but then a whisper of an answer floated down to him.

"Absolutely...love her...my most...important person..." A content sigh was all that came from Ranma as he finally slipped off to sleep, leaving a shocked Ryoga to sort out what he had just heard.

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**And...end chapter! I know you guys hate me, but I really wanted to do that! So, Ranma admitted that he loves Shampoo, too bad he doesn't know he did it. I do apologize to those who wanted to see a big Shampoo/Ukyo fight. I figure without Ranma between them, they would actually get along. Ukyo just seems to be able to fit as an Amazon, at least to me. I wouldn't leave you guys wanting though, I'll be sure to put in a nice long sparring match between Shampoo and Ukyo to satisfy your need for a catfight. This is a short chapter, but I needed to address some things in it before I moved on to a larger one. Next chapter will be huge! Many secrets will be revealed and the fur will fly, trust me. Also, don't forget to review! Till next update, see you guys.**


	6. Chapter 6: Pack Mentality

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**Chapter 6: "Pack Mentality"**

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**Disclaimer: I don't own Ranma 1/2...yet...Mwhahahahahaha...**

So wow, 6 chapters already! Thanks so much for all the reviews and such, it really means a great deal to me! Now, some people think Shampoo's being to hard on Ranma, but is she really? To her, he left her after a year, let his mother deal with telling her(she doesn't know Mousse stopped him), and was the cause of her face being carved up by the girl he chose over her(Akane). Really, she has a right to be bitter! Anyway, read and enjoy this new chapter! Also, when speaking in Chinese or by someone who actually knew how to pronounce it, I switched Shampoo's name to what it is meant to be, Xian Pu. So just to clear it up, Xian Pu is Shampoo.

_Thoughts are in Italics_

**Chinese is Bolded**

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"So Ranma...how are you feeling?" Barely containing his laughter, Ryoga looks the galley's table at Ranma. Ranma drags his head up to look at his amused friend. The bags under his eyes show that he did not enjoy a peaceful sleep.

"You know damn well how I'm feeling Ryoga." Ranma grunted. He usually wouldn't be so rude to the lost boy, but as it stood he was in no mood for this conversation. He rubbed his head and groaned.

"It feels like my brain is trying to dig it's way out of my skull..." He added in little more than a whisper. Memories of the past night were coming back to him, most of them he shuddered at.

"Hey...I didn't do anything dumb yesterday, did I?" He asked the grinning Ryoga. He seemed to think for awhile before answering.

"Nah, nothing much. Attempted to sing with the crew, not that I'd call what you were doing singing..." Ignoring the death stare Ranma was giving him, Ryoga thought back to what Ranma had said about Shampoo. _Ha, he has no idea what he said. I'll keep that under my hat until he can admit it without being drunk._ Smirking, Ryoga started eating his breakfast that consisted of eggs and toast.

"Hey Ranma," Ryoga caught his attention between mouthfuls, "Did you notice the way the Captain was acting last night?" Ranma seemed to perk up a bit before nodding.

"Yeah, he got all quiet when you mentioned the bonbori I use." Ranma said as he tossed back an aspirin and continued to rub his forehead. "He almost freaked out when I mentioned Shampoo too, think he knows her?"

"Don't see how." Ryoga replied as he finished off his breakfast. Rubbing his side where he got hit by the sea dragon, he looked over Ranma and sighed. "Well, we could go talk to him seeing as both of us won't be able to work for awhile." Ryoga laughed to himself as he watched Ranma try to stand. It was all he could do to even get out of his hammock that morning without falling, it was going to be quite a treat to see his rival try to navigate several flights of stairs to get to the Captain's cabin.

"One good thing came out of this though." Ranma looked at Ryoga with a 'I dare you to say it' face. "At least you finally learned that you're not the 'invincible' Saotome!" The laughing that erupted from Ryoga was only eclipsed by the crash of his head into wall of the galley...

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The walk to the Captain's cabin was laced with speculation by theories. Both boys came to a similar opinion, however: The Captain was hiding something. Ranma and Ryoga found themselves in front of the large iron door that housed the missing Captain. In fact, most of the crew hadn't seen him since dinner the night before, most of them saying that he looked lost in thought. He had missed breakfast and that had most of the crew worried. Ranma and Ryoga would have visited him even if they didn't have questions to ask him. The hollow sound that came from the room as Ranma knocked on the door was all that replied to the two young men. After several moments, Ranma spoke up.

"Hey, old man. You in there?" For a time, there was no answer. Ranma was about to knock again when a voice broke the silence.

"What do you want, whelp." Was the reply. It was the Captain's voice, it just lacked the familiar bravado that the two boys had gotten used to.

"Let us in, we've got some things to discuss, and we ain't taken 'no' for an answer!" That was more forceful than Ranma had intended, but he was in no mood to dance around the subject. An audible sigh could be heard from the other side before the door unlocked. Looking at Ryoga and seeing him shrug, Ranma opened the door.

"Ok, so what the heck is wrong...wow..." The surprise came as they walked in the room. Lavish red curtains with embroidered dragons adorned the room and a large map of China took up half of the left-hand wall. Shocked, Ranma and Ryoga keep walking into the room, gaping. Ryoga taps Ranma's shoulder and points above the door they just walked in through. There, shining brilliantly, were a pair of bonbori. Not tarnished in the least, they had the same pattern as Ranma's, Shampoo's, own pair.

"Hey old man, where the heck did you get those!" Ranma whirled around to face the old Captain. He was staring at the map of China with his had resting on one part in particular. Ranma couldn't see the name of the place that drew his attention, but he did notice the pain in the man's eyes as he stared at it. Regaining his composure, the Captain turned to look at his visitors.

"I should be the one askin' that question, boy." He said in monotone. He wandered over to a large chair and motioned for them to sit on a nearby couch.

"Ryoga said you use a pair, lemme see 'um before I answer any of yer questions." Ranma, having no reason to deny him, produced his weapons and handed them to the Captain. Looking them over for a moment, the old mans' eyes grew wide and his cigar threatened to fall out of his gaping mouth.

**"By the gods, these are..." **The Captain trailed off in Chinese. Ranma furrowed his brow and looked over at Ryoga who was just as confused, but for a different reason.

**"Who they belong to, old man?"** Ranma asked, surprising both Ryoga and the Captain. The fact Ranma managed to say something in Chinese managed to pry the Captains' gaze from the weapons for a moment.

"Heh, yer a quick study. Didn't think you'd pick up on Chinese that fast, ya still have a long way to go though." The old man said as he shifted in his chair.

"Hold on, when the heck did you even learn Chinese?" That came from Ryoga who was still as confused as ever. "And what did you two say?" Ranma laughed a bit at his friend.

"Ah, I learned from some book the Captain gave me, I'll teach you some before we get to China, so don't worry." Turning to the old man, Ranma continued. "For Ryoga's sake, let's keep this in Japanese. That ok, Brush?" Ranma now sported a slight smile. To the old man's credit, he gave a hardy laugh at the situation and Ryoga only scratched his head.

"Aye, lets. So, you heard that worm say my name, eh? Seems yer a bit more alert than I had you pegged." He began examining the bonbori again. Only raising his eyes to look at Ranma he shifted his cigar in him mouth. "So you know Cologne?"

Ryoga looked over at a confused Ranma, then promptly gave up at trying to understand what was going on. "Uhhh...yeah, I know the old ghoul." The Captain's face lit up and he broke out in laughter at Ranma's description of the elderly Amazon.

"Old ghoul! Har, that be a first. I've heard my mother called a lot of things, but 'old ghoul' is by far the most fitting." Calming down, he noticed the stunned looks on his charges faces and decided to explain further.

"Well? Don't you 'ave some questions? That is what you two whelps bothered me fer, right? " He looked down at the bonbori and sighed. Setting them down beside his chair, he waited for the two boys to ask the inevitable questions. It took awhile, but Ryoga recovered first.

"Yyyyyyy...YOU'RE HER SON?" Was all he was able to get out. Ranma was still trying to process the information. A quick hit to the shoulder by Ryoga brought him around enough to produce some coherent speech.

"So...that makes you...Xian Pu's grandfather...?" Ranma asked, still in a state of shock.

"Aye, it does." Taking a more serious look, he taps the handle of his cutlass that was also laying at the side of the chair, his gaze fixed on Ranma. "And how exactly do you know me granddaughter, whelp?"

Seeing that Ranma wasn't going to be able to produce answers for awhile, and also noticing that the elder Amazon was getting more annoyed by the minute, he decided to recount the events that had happened in Nerima. Throughout the story, Ranma recovered enough to interject where Ryoga would get some facts wrong.

**"So, let me get this straight," **The sudden switch to Chinese let Ranma know that the old man wasn't kidding around. **"My precious granddaughter, whom I love dearly, was beaten to such a degree by your fiancée' that not only did she flee the country and abandon her honor, she left behind her weapon, an extension of her very soul and the pride of an Amazon warrior? Am I getting this right, whelp?" **The annoyance in his voice had Ryoga, who didn't even understand the language, flinch and move closer to the door.

Deciding to face the music, Ranma nodded and stared the man in the face. He was surprised at the man's anger, but knew he wouldn't get very far if he ran. Captain Brush simply got up from his chair and headed over to a large table off to the right side of the room where he poured himself a drink. When he looked over at Ranma and motioned for him to come over, he nodded and followed.

**"Well, what do you have to say for yourself?" **Was the calm, yet annoyed question put to Ranma as he took a drink.

**"I no have answer for that. I can say I...like Xian Pu. Am trying to make up for mistakes by going to China and get her back." **He paused a moment and considered what to say next. **"Never heard Xian Pu mention anything about grandfather though." **The broken reply made Ranma chuckle in his mind, reminding him of Shampoo's Japanese. He was so caught up in memories, that he didn't notice Brush getting a vial of water that was sitting on the table he was next too. The Captain slipped it into his pocket without Ranma's notice before continuing.

"**I guess you and her never talked much then." **The remorse was written on Ranma's face at that observation was obvious, but Brush didn't want to let him off the hook just yet.

"**All this time she just wanted to get some affection from you. Yeah, she may have resulted to some underhanded tricks, but can you really fault her? Hell boy, you lived with one of your other fiancée's, and the other was your best childhood friend! She felt that she had to do things like that just to get some attention from you. Didn't you ever want to get to know her before you just dismissed her!"** The rage was building up in the Captains voice. _Hope he dosn't ask me how I know all that...maybe it's time to use the water..._ He slipped his hand into his coat pocket and shifted the vile he had previously hidden there but Ranma disrupted his train of thought.

"WHAT THE HELL DID YOU EXPECT ME TO DO?" The forcefulness of this was not lost on the Captain as he turned his attention to the furious Ranma who was not even bothering with Chinese.

"Every time I even attempted to get to know one of the girls better someone would pummel me! Be it Mousse for 'taking his beloved Shampoo' or Ryoga there for 'hurting poor Akane again'! I couldn't do anything without someone all over me, Akane alone would attack me at the least provocation, Ukyo would belt me around with that spatula of hers, and Shampoo would just go sulk somewhere until I felt guilty enough to apologize. She would usually glomp me when I did, and then by some act of kame Akane would see it and the whole thing would start all over again!"

Ryoga was going to say something in his defense, but he decided it was best to shut up when he caught a look from Ranma.

"And you!" Ranma turned to the Captain who was now focused on the emotionally unstable young man in front of him. "What do you think your doing, going on about all of this? You think I liked that! You think I wanted to make Xian Pu feel like that? I hated it... I wanted to tell her more than anything that I l-l-l-lo...cared for her." It had been eating away at Ranma for months. Constantly berated by his family, hounded by fiancée's, dodging misguided kendoists. The wall finally fell and the only two witnesses to it were his life-long rival and the old sea captain.

"It was more than what I felt with Akane, much more. To me, Akane was just something my pop stuck me with, I never wanted that. When I first got to the dojo she was so nice to me, once she found out I was a guy, she changed." He was barely able to hold in the wave of sadness that came over him. Summoning up the valiant Saotome male emotion mask, he managed to push back his tears.

"I was on the road with pops for 13 years. Ukyo was my only friend in between and I only knew her for about a year, after her years passed before I got close to anyone again. When Akane treated me so nicely, I thought I actually had a friend, someone who could understand me since they were in the art. When she started treating me differently just because I was a guy, I tried to fix it, to go back, but she was already too far jaded against me. Xian Pu...was different though. No matter what, she would always forgive me. She never hit me, called me pervert, used an old friendship against me, nothing like that. I never got mad at her for all the tricks she'd pull because I could see it, I could see the loneliness she carried...she was...is...just like me, always being pushed around by family and fate." Ryoga just hung his head in shame and silence as the Captain crossed his arms and listened. After he again got his emotions in check again, he continued.

"Ha, I don't know when I started to really care about her, I really don't. I love Akane and Ukyo, but not like that. They are just...really good friends. I don't wanna hurt them or nothin' so I would never push things with Shampoo. I kept thinking I would have forever to deal with this...guess not huh Captain?" Ranma actually chuckled to himself. The Captain was silent for a few minutes. He took a look at the young man standing beside him and noticed a few wet marks on the table below. _So, that boy isn't the shell of calmness he tries to show, eh? Well, time to get this show on the road.  
_

"Boy... ye be doin' a good thing, but you know there will be consequences at the village, right?" The tone of the mans' voice made sure Ranma knew he was dead serious.

"Yeah, I figure as much. What do you think they'll do to me?" Ranma asked as he turned to Ryoga with a questioning look in his eye, looking for a neutral opinion. The Captain took that moment to strike out with the vial of water he had concealed. Before Ranma knew what was going on, he found himself slightly wet. Getting mad, he tried to yell at the man, but something was wrong. Where there should have been curses, there were odd, sharp sounds that cut through the silence.

_What the hell! That was a...bark..._ A feeling of dread swept over Ranma as he looked over at a stuttering Ryoga, only he had to look up to see him. He turned to Brush who was wearing a impassive look and holding a empty vial of water, it was then that Ranma looked down at his clothes that were laying in a heap below him. _Oh hell no!_

Ranma shook his loose-fitting shirt off of himself before he ran over to Brush's cutlass to get a look at himself in its' polished blade. The image that looked back was not one of Ranma. Where there should be a red-haired girl, there was now a red-colored wolf. Sharp canines accented his face and his labored breath fogged up the blade. His cold blue eyes looked over his paws and tail. His fur there shifted to a raven black in a flame pattern on his paws and legs. His tail also had a black tip that looked like a flame, the pattern took up over half of it. The bottom part of his jaw, chest, and stomach was a light gray color fur.

"R...Ranma!" Ryoga watched the red wolf turn and look at him. It then shot it's glare to Captain Brush.

"Most likely they'd do something like that. Same thing they did with Xian Pu, they'd give you an animal curse. After the way ye treated me grand-daughter, it's only fitting you turn into a mutt." Seeing the wolf tense up, Brush shifted his gaze into a cold stare. "Don't even think it whelp, you couldn't beat me in yer normal form, you have no chance now." _At least, I don't think you do...maybe this wasn't such a hot idea after all..._

Baring his teeth, Ranma let out a growl. To Brush's amazement, Ranma managed to summon all of his chi even in his cursed form. Ryoga had the sense to run out of the room, watching the events from the hall. Slowly moving over towards his weapons, the Captain watched any movement coming from Ranma. The boy-turned-wolf saw the action and let his chi erupt. Flames formed from his paws and encompassed the lower half of his boy, including his tail.

"Oh shi..." Before the Captain could even curse, Ranma leapt at him. In his new form, his speed was greater than ever before. With a quick, flaming tackle, Ranma sent the man hurtling towards his bookshelf, smoke coming from his singed shirt. From the hall, Ryoga cringed when he saw the impact. He was about to speak-up, but a glance from the flaming wolf quickly shut him up. Even so, the rest of the crew heard the commotion and came to investigate.

"What the bloody hell!" Said Barry, the helmsman, as he and ten others looked past Ryoga. From what they could see, their Captain was facing down a flaming demon. They were about to intervene when Captain Brush put up his hand.

"None of ya bother us! This is between me an' the boy." He turned to the wolf and tossed off his coat. "I accept yer challenge! If you can beat me, I'll forgive yer transgressions on behalf of me family. If you lose, you give up all claims to Xian Pu. How's them stakes, whelp?"

A low growl was the answer got from Ranma before the boy-turned-wolf headed out the door. The crew scrambled out of the creatures way, none of them wanting to invoke the ire of a demon. The Captain regained his composure before walking over to where his weapons lay. Considering for a moment, he took Shampoo's bonbori and walked towards the door.

"Did you mean all that? You can forgive him just like that if he wins?" Brush stopped in the hall and nodded.

"Will you cure him if he wins?" He of all people knew what it was like to loose your human body. Not even he wished it on another person.

"That I can't do. Wither he wins or not, that is his punishment for his transgressions against me family. My punishment, his new wolf curse, is far better than some of the things others in me family would come up with. Can you imagine that boy with a cat curse?" Ryoga thought about that for a moment, before nodding. A few uncomfortable moments passed before a lupine howl came from the ships deck. The rage conveyed in it sent shivers up the spine of Ryoga and the rest of the crew.

"Aye, that boy is impatient." Looking at the worried expression on Ryoga's face, he gave one of his trademark grins. "Don't worry though, I won't kill him, I'm just going to test how much he cares for my grand-daughter meself." With that, he headed up to the deck, bonbori in hand.

_Ha, with something like his future with Shampoo on the line, I don't think that old man could handle Ranma even if he was serious. _Ryoga thought as he and the rest of the crew followed Brush to see the fight.

* * *

**A Few Day's Earlier on the Hong Kong Maru...**

**

* * *

**

It was the third day of training for Ukyo and Shampoo. Cologne had insisted teaching them the more basic Amazon techniques before moving to advanced lessons. Of course, basic to Cologne included mastering the Bakusai Tenketsu and Kachu Tenshin Amaguirken. Shampoo had chosen the Amaguirken and immediately dove into training. Having fought with Ranma before in the past, she was a witness to the amazing speed the skill could bestow. Ukyo took to the Bakusai Tenketsu training well having spent most of her early life fighting the pounding waves of the ocean. She still didn't know how Cologne managed to produce multiple boulders on a cruse ship, but she didn't ask. Cologne said she was at the point where Ryoga was on his sixth day of training. At her current level she could put finger-sized holes in the boulder, but not crack it.

"Child, you must use your mind's eye to see the point where the rock's chi is the weakest! Only then will you be able to truly master the technique." Cologne said. She was impressed with the progress the girl was making though. She wanted to get her to the point where she could win any fights she would get into at the village. _That would be wonderful considering what I want her and Shampoo to do once we get home..._ Her musing was cut short by the sound of shattering rock. Shocked, Cologne looked over at Ukyo. She was breathing heavily and her fist was pointing outward with her index finger extended, a pile of rubble was at her feet.

"Very good child! You now have mastered the Bakusai Tenketsu. You should be proud, it took Ryoga twice as long to learn it." Cologne added.

"I kinda cheated, I had Shampoo teach me the trick to it yesterday." Ukyo said sheepishly. Cologne looked over to where Shampoo was practicing and smiled. _It's good to see those too get along like this._ She motioned for Shampoo to join the two other Amazons.

"**Well, you have both progressed well in your training. Shampoo, you have learned the Kachu Tenshin Amaguirken and Ukyo has mastered the Bakusai Tenketsu in just three short days. I was fully expecting it to take the entire week for you two to learn these techniques." **The elder Amazon couldn't help but chuckle as she watched the two girl light up at her praise. They deserved it, both skills had taken Ranma and Ryoga weeks to learn. Of course, they didn't both have the full attention of an Amazon Elder to guide them. Coughing to gain their attention, she continued.

"**Now, this is very significant. In three weeks a tournament will be held in Joketsuzoku. Xian Pu, do you remember it?" **The younger Amazon thought for a moment then it hit her.

"Yes Great-grandmother, it is the partner tournament, is it?" She answered back.

"**That is right child, I wish for you two to enter it. Of course, much more training is needed for you two to actually win, but I think you can do it." **She then turned to Ukyo. **"Especially if you study elemental schools that compliment's Xian Pu's."** It took a moment for Ukyo to translate what Cologne had said. When she did, her face lit up in a smile.

"You mean you're going to teach me an elemental school too?" If that was true, Ukyo was left wondering what school she would get. She had talked briefly with Shampoo about it and found out she was going to learn from the Water School.

"**Correct, you will learn from the Air School." **She noted the confused looks in the Amazon's faces and decided to enlighten them. **"You see, the four schools are Earth, Fire, Wind, and Water. Earth and Fire complement just as Wind and Water do. The Fire School focuses on physical and chi attacks while leaving out flashy moves or speed. The Earth School is all about defense, most of it's moves are to up power and guard. The Water School is more all-around. It has the potential to deal great damage, but is mostly about precision and armed combat. The Wind School sets speed and the number of attacks over all else. Of course, once you get to the advanced levels of the schools you can mold the style to suit you." **

Considering what Cologne said for a moment, Ukyo spoke up. With the Air School, can I still use my spatula?" However much she would like a new style, Ukyo was reluctant to give up her prized weapon.

**"Like I said, you can mold the school to suit you, I see no problems with it."** Cologne replied. While the two other Amazon's talked things over, Shampoo realized a problem with the elders plan.

"Great-grandmother, we no can enter Amazon partner tournament." The elder Amazon turned towards her great-granddaughter with a confused, if not slightly annoyed, look. "Lin Lin and Ran Ran are the current champions! Even if Shampoo and Ukyo train non-stop we no can beat them in partner match."

The elder Amazon sighed and looked into Shampoo's eyes. "They won't be in the tournament this year Shampoo. Lin Lin was hurt badly during a patrol outside of the village a few days ago." Noting the anger and concern, Cologne quickly added, "But she'll be fine. She just needs more time to heal."

"What happen?" Although the concern was abided, the rage was still apparent in Shampoo's voice.

"Like I said, she was on patrol. Apparently, there was a scuffle with some Musk Dynasty troops. It wasn't going well until several older Amazon's stepped in. Believe me Shampoo, I am going to look into this first thing when we get back, you have no need to press the issue."

Ukyo could see the anger written on Shampoo's face and decided to change the subject for her own benefit before she said something Cologne wouldn't let pass. "Uh, how do you know what happened in the village a few days ago when we've been on this boat for so long?"

Glad for the new subject, Cologne answered. "Good question. The Amazon's have a very good postal service that can get letters to members anywhere in the world. We use a breed of falcon to carry them. I get letters from each of my family members at least once a week, that's how I knew. Although, some members have been delinquent in sending letters..." She trailed off and tapped the ground with her staff with mock frustration. "Like my son. His last letter was sent a few a few days ago from Nerima. It was so brief that it didn't tell me anything at all! I swear, even after all these years that boy is still as daft as ever."

"Grandfather was in town and you no tell Shampoo!" Even Shampoo was interested in the subject now, it wasn't everyday she got to hear from her Grandfather so she was annoyed with the Elder Amazon.

"Well child, we actually passed him when we were at the harbor. He's the captain of our cargo business. If I knew you wanted to see him, I could have arranged it." Seeing the downtrodden look on her great-granddaughter, Cologne decided to slip some information that she had been holding back as a surprise.

"He will be at the Village in time for the tournament though, you can see him then." Seeing the smile the younger Amazon now wore was enough to make Cologne crack a small grin.

"Um, don't get mad at me for prying, but what cargo business are you talking about?" Ukyo asked, disrupting the family moment.

"Oh, it's not prying dear. Joketsuzoku owns several business on the side. You don't think we are a bunch of simple barbarians that have turned a blind eye to the outside world, do you? I acquired the cargo ship from an old acquaintance during a poker match some years ago. My son has always liked to travel, so I let him take care of it for me."

"Great-grandmother, what grandfather say in letter?" Even though she would see him in a few weeks, Shampoo was still eager to hear from him anyway.

"Well, it seems he's taken on two apprentices. That is a miracle in itself, I'm surprised that delinquent would take on that much responsibility. The truly shocking thing is that he says both boys are studying a Elemental School." Shampoo was shocked as well, it wasn't every day that you run across someone with that much talent.

"What's more, he intends to have them enter the tournament. He says their very talented, he seems very confident in their ablities..." Cologne said, she was trying to get them eager for the fight.

"Great-grandmother bet on Shampoo and Ukyo!" Shampoo turned to her partner and saw a look of determination.

"We no let you down! Is Amazon place to beat weak men!" Shampoo announced balancing on one foot shooting her great-grandmother a Amazon victory sign and a wink. Even though Ukyo didn't have the quite same view of the male gender, she couldn't help but get caught up in Shampoo's enthusiasm.

"Then I would get training! From what Brush has said about them, they seem to be very advanced in their schools. One of them already knows several techniques of the Fire School." Shampoo and Ukyo heeded the elder Amazon's suggestion and started working on the basic chi techniques of their respective schools. Before Shampoo started though, she asked her great-grandmother another question.

"What names of competition?" Cologne broke out in a cold sweat. Fumbling for an answer, she avoided eye contact with the young Amazon.

"Errr...well...ah...he didn't say! Yes, he didn't say. Guess you have to ask them yourself at the tournament." Shampoo was about to press her great-grandmother about her behavior when Ukyo called her over for some help. Giving Cologne a suspicious glance, she dropped it and went to help Ukyo.

"That was close." Cologne said under her breat as she hopped off to the deck and pulled out Brush's letter to read again.

_Dear Mother, _

_How ye be doin'? We just left from Nerima headed to Hong Kong. I figure we'll get in about two weeks after you, just in time for the annual partners tournament. I do have two interesting passengers though, a Ranma Saotome and Ryoga Hibiki. It was a shock to me as well. The letter you left for me with the Harbor Master led me to believe that the boy ended things with Xian Pu. I guess you misjudged him. That doesn't happen very often does it? I'll be sure to hold this one over yer head fer a few centuries! Anyway, I've taken them under my wing so-to-speak, I'll get them whipped into shape fer the tournament. The Saotome boy is at an intermediate's level in the Fire School and the Hibiki boy should get to that point in the Earth School by next week. I don't know how I'll break it to them that I know Xian Pu, I wonder how he'll take it when I tell him I'm yer son? Maybe I can do a bit o' acting and cover my butt so he dosn't find out I knew before hand. I do figure I'll have to punish him boy fer what he's done to Xian Pu. I still have that vial of cursed wolf water you left with me all those years ago, I think he'll like that curse more than his current one. Well, I'll cut this letter short, we're just about to cross into Faustosen's territory. You remember that idiot dragon right? He's probably still goin' on about how I ate his mother or somethin'. You know those types, can't even forgive one little mistake. Oh, my advice to you: Don't tell Xian Pu the boy is coming for her, let it be a surprise. I think she'll like that one. Well, I'm off to train the kiddies, I figure a mock fight a week should keep them from each other's throats. I also think I'll challenge him for the right to even go after Xian Pu, that should really put a fire under his arse! Har, har, har. _

_Yer Son, Brush_

All Cologne could do is smile. She folded the letter back up and tucked it away in her robe before heading back to the ships dojo to train the girls. _Looks like my son has a plan, good work...Well, I thought it would take a year or two for Son-in-law to come around. Guess I did misjudge the boy..._ With a soft chuckle, Cologne mused over her long life. For the fist time in 300 years, she was happy to be wrong.

* * *

**Wow, sorry the update took so long, this was a hard chapter to write. I hope you guys can forgive me for getting rid of Ranma's female curse though, I think he's cooler as a wolf! Next chapter: Shampoo and Ukyo train while Ranma and Brush rumble! Oh, Mousee will get some air time too! See you next time, and don't forget to review!**


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